Topics in Subtropics

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Topics in Subtropics Blog
You can subscribe to this  blog with multiple entries per week reflecting what's happening with subtropical crops and upcoming educational events.  Just click on the "Subscribe" button just to the right of this paragraph.  There's also our seasonal quarterly Topics in Subtropics newsletter found at our Ventura, Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Riverside, San Diego, Tulare and Kern Counties Cooperative Extension websites.
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juice container

Made Local

November 18, 2013
By Ben A Faber
It can't be any more local than this. This is a juice container with the image and name of the person who has personally juiced your oranges right in front of you. This is almost the ultimate in branding for a locally produced product.
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Israel 6

When to Prune Avocados and Suggestions of How to Prune

November 15, 2013
By Ben A Faber
In the past avocados were rarely pruned. In fact, if the trees got very big, growers would stump them down to 3-4 feet and then let them regrow. This would often be a disaster, since the trees rapidly grew to stupendous sizes again.
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skirting

To skirt or not to skirt, that is the question

November 12, 2013
By Ben A Faber
There is a running debate about whether avocado canopies should be skirted up, raised up so that you can see under the canopy. In doing so, the trees tendency is to maintain its bearing volume by increasing a similar amount in height that is lost by removing the bottom layer of canopy.
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wierd meyers

Wierd Meyers

November 8, 2013
By Ben A Faber
You see the darndest things in orchards, aside from all the junk that people throw out of their cars. Here's a case where someone had a little time on their hands and tattooed some fruit in the field. Apparently it was some pointed object that scared the skin and then it healed over.
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