A feral avocado tree in Southern California
There are some avocado trees in Southern California that survive on rainfall alone. Some that I know were once part of old groves while others appear to have grown as wild seedlings from the beginning. Have they tapped into an underground water source? Are they on a...
Mobile avocado pollenizer tree
Maybe you only have space for one avocado tree, but you want maximum fruit production. You could try keeping a small tree of the opposite flower type (A/B) in a container next to your main tree. During spring when they're both in bloom, the bees can use the pollen...
Mountain Meadow Mushrooms kit: grow your own
During a presentation I attended by Roberto Ramirez -- owner of one of the few mushroom farms left in Southern California, Mountain Meadow Mushrooms in Escondido -- he mentioned that they had started selling kits. You could buy one and grow your own mushrooms at home....
Early spring vegetable garden in Southern California: timings of sowings and plantings
Early spring is a time of transition in the Southern California vegetable garden when cool-season crops are still growing and being harvested but warm-season crops are being sown and planted as well. This video shows what my vegetable garden looks like here in early...
Which kind of citrus tree do you have?
Because there is a citrus tree in almost every yard in California, we often inherit one when we move into a new house. Which kind is it? What if there's no one around to tell you? Here I describe how I approached figuring out the identities of a couple mystery citrus...
I planted tomatoes too early
Plants grow according to the weather, not according to the calendar. Plants grow according to the weather, not according to the calendar. Plants grow according to the weather, not according to the calendar. Here are my excuses: It was mid-March, a planting time that...
Online presentation: Growing avocados – FAQs and Your Qs
The evening was recorded and posted on the Orange County CRFG YouTube channel. You can watch it there or watch it here. Consider subscribing to the OC CRFG channel, as they have many excellent videos. And consider becoming a member of the California Rare Fruit Growers...
Can you start vegetable seeds in compost?
I’ve been starting my vegetable seeds in homemade compost for many years so when I hear someone say that this can’t be done, or shouldn’t be tried, I wonder about their reasons for saying so. In addition to hearing individual gardeners recommend against starting...
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