If you like serious smoky sweet heat, step right up Chocolate habaneros are even spicier than the Red Savina with unique earthy and smoky undertones that complement their typical habanero sweetness. Chocolate habaneros are hotter than regular habaneros? They are. In terms of the Scoville scale, chocolate habaneros tend to hit around 425,000 – 577,000 Scoville heat units. That can …
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Pincushion flower is still blooming in winter in Sunnyvale. Scabiosa caucasica (Caucasian scabious) is a species of flowering plant in the family Caprifoliaceae, native to the Caucasus, north eastern Turkey, and northern Iran. Growing to 60 cm (24 in) tall and broad, it is a clump-forming perennial with divided leaves. Pincushion-shaped buds, borne on erect stems, open to pale blue …
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Rancho San Antonio is one of the Bay Area’s most popular parks. On a nice summer day there’s a continuous stream of people on the main road to Deer Hollow Farm, and even on the challenging 8-mile PG&E Trail there’s a group of hikers or joggers every 1 or 2 minutes. It’s often said that the park is overcrowded, but …
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The YOLO WONDER bell pepper was developed in Yolo County just west of Sacramento in Northern California. YOLO WONDER – sweet; Bell Elongated Type; 3.5 to 4 inches long by 3 to 3.75 inches wide; thick flesh; matures from dark green to red; pendant pods; green leaves; 24 to 30 inches tall; Mid Season (70-80 days); dependable producer; C.annuum. Sweet …
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Corno de Toros are a beautiful, long, dark-red heirloom Italian pepper. 6-10 inches long, twisted or curved and pointed on the end. These deep crimson beauties are very sweet and intensely ‘peppery’. They’re a perfect roasting pepper-their skins blacken nicely, and shed easily–and are also good raw in salads. In my opinion the flavor of Corno de Toros is superior …
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Serrano chiles look like slender jalapenos. They are typically eaten raw and have a bright and biting flavor that is notably hotter than the jalapeño pepper. Serrano peppers are commonly used in making pico de gallo, and salsa, as the chili is particularly fleshy compared to others, making it ideal for such dishes. The Scoville rating of the serrano pepper …
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The “Moon and Stars” melon is a century-old heirloom from Tennessee/Missouri. It is a large-fruited melon whose dark-green rind is speckled with tiny yellow dots (the stars) surrounding one or more larger yellow spots (the moon). It is cool that the leaves have the same pattern. Another cool thing is that this is an heirloom melon, not a hybrid, so …
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The western gray squirrel was first described by George Ord in 1818 based on notes taken by Lewis and Clark at The Dalles in Wasco County, Oregon. The bad news is that in a forty-house area around my home, I am dinner central: fruit, then tomatoes then sunflowers. I have a lawn and about 50 pots perfect for squirrels to …
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This map shows the likelihood of liquefaction in Northern Santa Clara County during a magnitude 7.8 earthquake on the northernmost segments of the San Andreas Fault. This earthquake is similar to the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. At each location, the map predicts the approximate probability that shallow wet sands will liquefy and cause surface manifestations of liquefaction such as sand …
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American natives, sunflowers are grow for beauty as well as harvested for seed. An annual plant, sunflowers have big, daisylike flower faces of bright yellow petals (and occasionally red) and brown centers that ripen into heavy heads filled with seeds. Tall and course, the plants have creeping or tuberous roots and large, bristly leaves. Some sunflowers grow to over 16 …
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