Topics in Subtropics

It's possible to grown many other tree crops along the coast other than avocado and citrus. When speaking of other perennial evergreens like avocado, trees that don't lose their leaves but retain a canopy year round, we want trees that can handle the occasional cold periods that happen in winter.

So after five years of drought a grower told me he finally gets it. Farming avocados in Goleta with limited well water and poor quality and expensive, rationed delivery, he has finally cut out trees that were not performing well. These were wind sept trees, areas with root and crown rot.

There has been more than the usual number of questions about what I am calling "bio-based" herbicides recently. Arguably, this is coming from news that some school districts and cities specifically calling out the use of glyphosate on the properties they manage.

Because of potential contamination of mulches from pesticides, mulch use is being called into question and testing may be required for mulches applied to organic orchards. This is a recent ruling.

Here is a system of avocado pruning that seems to be working for the grower. He has been keeping his 12 year old Hass' planted on 16 x 16 to 8 feet high by pruning out center limbs each year.