Would you rather garden in the tropics?
A couple weeks ago I grew tired of protecting baby mango trees from frost and of watching more leaves on my banana plants brown due to cold nights. This has been a persistently chilly and rainy winter for us in Southern California. At my house, only once did we go a...
The Lamb/Hass avocado tree: a profile
In 2013, I planted a Lamb/Hass avocado tree because its fruit was said to be ready for harvest in summer. I didn’t know much else about the variety, and I’d never tasted its fruit (knowingly). During the past five or six years I’ve learned a lot more about Lamb --...
Before killing it, name that weed
I was walking with a friend through his fruit tree orchard a couple weeks ago when he knelt down to pull up a weed. “Oh, I love that plant,” I said. “These things are everywhere. What is it?” “It’s called deerweed. It’s a native plant. It has little yellow and orange...
Should you grow vegetables from seeds or plants?
This year, I happen to be growing all of my vegetables from seed, which is a throwback to when I started vegetable gardening. In the interim, there have been years where I grew entirely from plants purchased at a nursery. During most years though, my vegetable garden...
Grafting a pollenizer branch into your fruit tree
Cherries are tricky in Southern California. Only a few varieties will fruit here with our relatively warm winters. Six winters ago, I planted two cherry trees for my mom in her backyard. The two needed each other in order to fruit. The flowers of Minnie Royal could...
Should you buy a big or small avocado tree?
When it comes to buying an avocado tree, is bigger better? In one major aspect, yes, because a bigger avocado tree is capable of giving you more fruit sooner. On the flipside, bigger avocado trees come with three disadvantages, which is why I have purchased and...
Growing peas in Southern California
My children have taught me that it is more fun to graze a garden than to harvest its produce, bring it into the house, wash it, prepare it, or cook it, or refrigerate it for later. Apologies to my wife. I used to grow snap peas for her because she likes to make stir...
Think about sunshine when pruning deciduous fruit trees
What do you think about when you’re pruning your nectarine tree? I think about sunshine. Myriad smaller thoughts also go through my mind, but my overarching thought is about imagining rays of sun hitting the tree’s canopy and working their way down and in. The reason...
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