Under the Solano Sun

I've never grown heirloom tomatoes before but have always been fascinated by the different varieties, colors and sizes of these beauties. I see them at our local Farmers Market during the summer season but never buy any because they're expensive. I always get the regular cherry or Roma variety.

I don't know why I never thought about it before, but I just realized that birds like tomatoes! This is probably not a newsflash to most backyard gardeners, but I never knew until I watched a mockingbird happily devouring my Sungold cherry tomatoes today.

Since late Spring, there seem to a lot more coyotes around this year than in past years. Besides hearing packs of them howling at night, every week or so I see one or two coyotes strolling across the field by my house, a couple of times when I've been out working in the yard.

The granny smith apple originated from Australia. It's named after Maria Ann Smith. She propagated it by chance. The apples are a crisp, little tart and have lots of fiber. This time of year, I'm always grateful for our apple trees.

We all know inhaling wildfire smoke is bad for humans. But is it equally unhealthy for your plants? You may be surprised to know that wildfire smoke can be both good and bad for your plants.