Seeing the new spring growth on the avocados is always a joy. This time of year is full of unknowns: prices, production, weather all TBD. But strong growth always suggests that success lies ahead and I appreciate the reassurance.

I know nothing matters any more but here's the president admitting that he accused Iran of bombing a school full of their own children based on absolutely nothing.

Nothing like trying a different irrigation scheme with higher pressure to reveal weak glue joints from previous repairs.

Our friends from Food Forward came by the Santa Paula ranch this morning and are leaving with about 1000 pounds of citrus for our community. We appreciate their volunteer crew that gave a part of their weekend for others.

When a big dog tries to fit in the shade of a small tree. Pack leader Ello has spent enough time in the avocado 🥑 orchard that he knows to minimize effort on a warm day.

Crop rotation? It's valuable, but how to achieve it in an orchard that's expected to remain for 40+ years? Rotating covercrops! Allows us to have multiple plant species, even though only one (avocados) are permanent and expected to make money.

The only good thing I have to say about the Trump administration is that it has been an absolute meatgrinder for the ambitions of shitty people. And let me be the first to congratulate Sen. Mullins on his nomination.

This is the exact same Guy you could find 2,000 years ago as a Roman senator gleefully listing the number of Germani slain and sold into slavery, 900 years ago exulting in the sack of Jerusalem, or 100 years ago celebrating 500 yards taken on the Western Front. Timeless chickenhawk scum.

Yeah... It's a style problem.

Avocado farming is not for the impatient. These trees were planted in 2022, and will give us some fruit for this season. The 2027 season looks promising with lots of bloom. This is considered fast.

Today US troops go in harm's way to topple the regime in Tehran. If successful, it will leave a power vacuum to be filled by Moscow, making Iran a Russian satellite. Posting for future reference. Avocado and dog programming to resume shortly.

Testing interpretations of the "don't get on the couch" rule.

Centerpiece of an expanded and more secure dog yard at the Santa Paula ranch is this nicely crafted dog house from @thewooofspot. Now we just need to finish the fencing and add a little basic dog-proof landscaping.

The figs feel that spring is here, and while the calendar may disagree, I'm not sure that I can. Nice morning for a #farmlab field trip with @SEE_AG .

Mowing the covercrop close to the young #avocado trees to reduce competition for water, leaving the row centers to build more biomass. Hope and Roscoe approve.

To be be clear that it wasn't the ad we hated.

What was meant to be inspirational is now the equivalent of a "You are here" sign.

Avocados getting ready to flower in foreground, snow-capped Topa Topa in background. Why I live where I live and do what I do.

I haven't seen red shouldered hawks eating avocados, but I have noticed that they are more common in our orchard since we replaced the last of our lemons with avocados a few years back. Also hat tip to @kanejim.bsky.social for his caption.

Hidden by the covercrop/ filter strip is our primary orchard drain. It used to move a huge volume of water off the property, but now we perc nearly everything in even during heavy rain events. Considering whether we will need it in the future.

The clover #covercrop didn't take in one corner of the orchard, so ahead of the rain we disked and put down the mix we used elsewhere. But I had to indulge in a ground level look at the soil while it's visible. Love that biomass!

Sunny, peaceful morning in the #avocado orchard. This doesn't accurately reflect my lived reality today... it's been pretty chaotic. But if I post this, I can pretend that this accurately captures the day.

Training progress: Hope is proud of her "stay" without the leash being held. Roscoe is just out of frame trying to distract her, but without success (in this instance.)

A nice day for growing #avocados

I wish more farmers (and other people, but specifically farmers) recognized that not only is Trump not their friend or protector, but he's an existential threat to the lives they want to lead. Glad to see some in the industry starting to say what should have been obvious for a long time.

This is either an Anatolian Shepherd pic or a covercrop pic. Interpretation is up to you.

"But how dumb can I be? I mean... I have a lot of money."

Heads are going to explode 💥 Cato Institute just nuked the lie. Immigrants have cut U.S. deficits by $14.5 TRILLION since 1994, slashing the national debt by a third. All that “immigrants are bleeding us dry” noise? Absolute bullshit. 1/3

Hope is very professional at the office, but she's is happiest on the farm.

An issue with growing #avocados next to the 126 freeway is that once a year or so someone drives off the perfectly straight road at high speed and into the orchard. Hope inspects the latest damage.

This has nothing to do with US security. Trump’s tariffs disrupted critical mineral supply chains, and now he’s escalating threats to cover the damage. When economic self-inflicted wounds turn into territorial pressure and military ambiguity, that’s not strength, it’s desperation.

Unhinged

#avocado blossoms that will become the 2027 crop. Meanwhile, 2026 is already seeing huge volumes of fruit. Prices are low, so remember that guacamole tastes just as good during playoffs as it does during Super Bowl. Practice, practice, practice!

Hope surveys her domain on a California "winter" day.

Evenly spaced rainfall and lack of much extreme heat or wind made 2025 our lowest groundwater use year in quite some time. Less than an acre-foot of water pumped per planted acre! Anyway, here's a daikon radish growing through some mulch.

Field peas starting to bloom. 2 underappreciated #covercrop features: food for pollinators and helping to draw water *out* of the soil after the drenching we have received since mid November.

Disappointed #farmdog Hope thought we were going to get a "truckload of steaks."

Very weak sauce

“We should take it as a call to arms—that Trump’s America is not our America, that on the 250th anniversary year of our nation’s founding we won’t remain quiet as these thugs escalate their attack on the rule of law & our unbreakable commitment to democracy.” www.americaamerica.news/p/snapshot-a...

Always on the lookout for a new crop. I might have to go back to Sicily.. for business reasons of course.

DNA results back for Hope. 70% Anatolian Shepherd, 20% Great Pyrenees, 10% German Shepherd. Multi mutt Roscoe photobombs in foreground.

Windy days reveal many #avocados, most of which are thankfully still attached to the trees.

With Santa Ana winds following heavy rain, a lot of trees and limbs down. We're happy to be able to offer a place for the chips that is accessible despite 6"+ in the last week. Many nearby fields still have standing water. #soilhealth and infiltration wins!

First #avocados of the new season. These are Zutanos: not very flavorful, but better than no avocados. They add extra pollen in the orchard and improve the yield of the Hass. We thin most of the fruit off so we get more flowers next year, but a few provide our New Year's guac

Inspecting a new patch on an 80+ year old steel water line. The 70+ year old concrete line is no longer in service. Maintaining old infrastructure is one of the joys of agriculture.

"What's that?"

Today's irrigation cancelled after the panel blew. Big flash about 18" from my head when I tried to turn the well on. Best laid plans, etc....

Without a cloud on the horizon (literally or figuratively) we're going to run a little water today despite the November deluge. Overall soil moisture is still good, but we could use a bit to keep the shallow rooted avocados happy and stress free.

#barncat Taos meets his new coworker Hope. He seems to have a great deal of trust in her right off the bat which is not his default for unfamiliar dogs.

As promised, Roscoe has a new partner. Hope joins us from a shelter. She's thought to be a 1-2 yo Anatolian Shepherd, possibly abandoned from a puppy mill.