The Real Dirt

Cool season plants like a warm start, so it's not too early to begin adding some of them to the vegetable garden now. In this way you can extend the harvest of both warm season crops and cool season veggies.

A new season of Master Gardener Workshops is about to start! The series begins with a two-parter designed to help us make the most of our summer produce: Canning Fruits & Pickles: The Basics of Boiling Water Bath Canning on August 28, followed by Pressure Canning Vegetables and Dehydrating Fruits &...

We Californians understand the concept of summer dormancy: Those hills aren't brown, they're beautifully golden! We know that the cycle of seasons plays out a bit more dramatically across our hot, dry countryside than in locales where the landscape might stay predictably green throughout the summer.

A great choice for the home orchard is the Pluot, a plum-apricot hybrid. Pluots (pronounced plew-otts) are like plums in flavor and texture, but are sweeter and less acidic. Many pluot varieties are actually sweeter than either parent. Pluots vary in color.

Are you interested in becoming a Master Gardener? The UC Master Gardeners of Butte County will begin training a new class in mid-January 2024. Graduates of the 17-week course will join the current roster of 100 volunteers involved in a multitude of local gardening projects.