The Stanislaus Sprout

Fruit tree pruning ranks high on most home gardeners' to do list during the winter months. While deciduous fruit trees may be pruned at other times of the year, most gardeners do their annual heavy pruning during the trees' dormant period.

It's a cold winter's day here in the Central Valley. But instead of curling up in a cozy chair with a cup of tea, I'm out in my garden, planning and prepping for my spring planting. For me, this is the fun part, walking the gardens, looking at the raised beds, empty pots, and bare earth.

One of the joys of gardening includes watching butterflies sip nectar from flowers. In fact, many gardeners plant flowers just for these colorful insects.

Peach leaf curl is a disease that affects peach and nectarine trees. Although you may not see symptoms right now in the dormant season in California, it's time to think about treatment, especially if your tree had the disease last year.

[From Pests in the Urban Landscape blog] Mistletoe is a familiar sight of the season, often found wrapped in ribbon and hung for certain festivities this time of year.