What I Grow and What I Teach

I’ve been growing vegetables and herbs for more than 30 years, and during that time my garden has been both my classroom and my testing ground.

I grew up gardening with my parents in California’s Central Valley, where food gardening wasn’t a hobby—it was a way of life. That early experience shaped how I garden today: practical, seasonal, and grounded in observation rather than shortcuts. Over the decades, I’ve gardened in different climates and soil types, adapting methods to fit real conditions rather than forcing plants to fit a rigid system.

Today, I garden year-round in Sonoma Valley, growing vegetables and herbs in raised beds, mounded beds, and containers. My focus is always the same: healthy soil, correct timing, and steady, manageable work that supports long-term productivity.

Table of Contents

What I Grow

I grow a wide range of vegetables and herbs, including:

Tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, and other warm-season crops
Leafy greens and brassicas for cool-season harvests
Root crops such as carrots, beets, onions, garlic, and leeks
Culinary herbs grown for both fresh use and preservation

Rather than chasing novelty, I focus on varieties that perform reliably, taste good, and fit the season. I grow food to eat, to teach with, and to observe—paying attention to how plants respond to soil health, spacing, weather, and care over time.

How I Garden: No-Till, Regenerative Practices

For many years now, my gardening has centered on no-till, regenerative practices.

That means:

Building soil structure instead of breaking it down
Feeding soil life rather than relying on quick inputs
Keeping soil covered whenever possible
Disturbing beds only when necessary

I’ve seen firsthand how healthy soil reduces pest pressure, improves plant resilience, and simplifies garden work over time. My approach isn’t about perfection—it’s about progress, observation, and working with natural systems rather than against them.

These practices have shaped how I plan, plant, and maintain my garden, and they form the foundation of what I teach.

What I Teach

Teaching has always been a natural extension of my gardening practice.

Over the years, I’ve taught and shared my experience through:

University of California educational programs
Master Gardener talks and workshops
Hands-on workshops at Sonoma Garden Park
Writing and publishing detailed growing guides on HarvestToTable.com

My teaching focuses on helping gardeners understand why things work—not just what to do. Timing, soil temperature, plant spacing, seasonal transitions, and realistic expectations are recurring themes in everything I teach.

I aim to make vegetable gardening approachable and sustainable, whether you’re starting your first garden or refining a long-established one.

After decades of gardening, I’ve learned that most garden problems come down to a few core issues: planting at the wrong time, unhealthy soil, and trying to do too much at once.

HarvestToTable.com exists to cut through that confusion.

Everything I share—on the blog, in talks, in workshops or on my YouTube channel—is based on:

Long-term, hands-on experience
What I grow and test myself
Methods that support both productivity and soil health

My goal is to help gardeners grow better food, with less stress, and with practices that improve the garden year after year.

Learn More

If you’re interested in practical, experience-based guidance on growing vegetables and herbs—from seed starting to harvest—you’ll find in-depth articles, seasonal task lists, and growing guides throughout HarvestToTable.com.

This is the work I do, the food I grow, and the way I garden.

Stay One Step Ahead in the Garden

If you’d like clear, seasonal guidance on what to do—and what not to do—in your vegetable garden, I share practical monthly tips, planting reminders, and observations from my own garden by email.

You’ll receive: