Pear fruit trees best Bay Area bet

January is the start of fruit-tree time, a brief window of opportunity for gardeners to snatch up bare-root seedlings at bargain prices. But if low-grade soil is keeping you from jumping on the backyard-orchard...

Gardening basics: Grafting is easier than it seems and produces just the fruit you want

The process gets faster and easier with every new graft.

More on grafting, including videos, plus other resources for info on fruit and nut trees

Tips on picking and storing, a glossary and a list of scab-immune apple varieties are included.

First aid for broken limbs

If, like me, you find broken branches from Japanese maples or other small trees lying in the yard, you can try heroic measures to reattach the limbs. Use duct tape to reposition and secure branches back into their original place. Try to get the edges or green cambium layers to match up. This is a lot like grafting new branches onto a fruit tree.

Things To Do: Make your own fruit trees Sunday at Scion Exchange

Learn how to make your own grafted fruit trees Sunday at the annual Scion Exchange, presented by the