https://www.andy-barr.com/blog daily 0.75 2024-12-24 https://www.andy-barr.com/blog/your-next-iteration monthly 0.5 2024-12-24 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/4e8a65df-0e2e-4939-a138-1326140d98d1/Screenshot+2024-12-23+at+17.59.56.png Blog - Your next iteration - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.andy-barr.com/blog/the-quadrant-framework monthly 0.5 2024-12-20 https://www.andy-barr.com/blog/silicon-rust-belt-will-we-outsource-the-most-important-new-technology monthly 0.5 2024-07-08 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/48aca55f-e6b2-4492-a194-87703261c6f7/Screenshot+2024-07-06+at+16.28.46.png Blog - Silicon Rust Belt - will we outsource the most important new technology? - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/7de4dc25-633d-448b-a7a1-3c3535ab0f3b/Screenshot+2024-07-06+at+15.33.55.png Blog - Silicon Rust Belt - will we outsource the most important new technology? - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.andy-barr.com/blog/the-end-of-the-gmo-taboo-rapid-changes-coming-to-our-gardens-and-landscapes monthly 0.5 2024-07-07 https://www.andy-barr.com/blog/what-is-tech-anyways monthly 0.5 2024-07-06 https://www.andy-barr.com/blog/alignment monthly 0.5 2024-07-06 https://www.andy-barr.com/blog/messages-managers-get-about-devs monthly 0.5 2024-07-05 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/9d3022a5-0c21-4362-863b-2576313cad52/Screenshot+2024-07-04+at+08.29.13.png Blog - Messages Managers get about devs - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/1666cf35-d0d9-45a1-befd-d9d04a5f6843/Screenshot+2024-07-04+at+08.50.41.png Blog - Messages Managers get about devs - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/3bb2e52a-2759-4ffc-ac05-448c3ee7aaff/Screenshot+2024-07-01+at+09.23.43.png Blog - Messages Managers get about devs - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.andy-barr.com/blog/hiring-for-data-engineering-in-2024 monthly 0.5 2024-06-30 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/158281db-f9ce-401b-8f16-f96e132e8393/Screenshot+2024-06-30+at+14.53.42.png Blog - Hiring for Data Engineering in 2024 - Make it stand out A kind of question that is fun to ask (and solve) but that is ultimately useless for evaluating if someone is able to manage data assets. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/1152ff40-4b6e-485e-b8e9-ff683f81d50c/BloomsTaxonomy.png Blog - Hiring for Data Engineering in 2024 - Make it stand out In the original taxonomy, “knowledge” (or “recall”) is at the very bottom and “evaluation” and “synthesis” are at the top. https://www.andy-barr.com/blog/what-devs-especially-american-need-to-realize-in-2024 monthly 0.5 2024-06-30 https://www.andy-barr.com/blog/vibes-off-im-out monthly 0.5 2024-06-21 https://www.andy-barr.com/blog/experienced-talented-and-looking monthly 0.5 2024-06-21 https://www.andy-barr.com/blog/code-specialization-lessons-from-restaurants-in-turkey monthly 0.5 2024-06-18 https://www.andy-barr.com/blog/my-agtech-evolution monthly 0.5 2024-07-08 https://www.andy-barr.com/blog/why-saudi-arabia monthly 0.5 2024-07-08 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/50534cfe-77bf-4571-94cc-524cba9a8e8d/Screenshot+2024-07-04+at+00.28.09.png Blog - Why Saudi Arabia? - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/3e90bf93-00ff-4341-9ebe-dd10f7d16321/20240308_124017.jpeg Blog - Why Saudi Arabia? - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/98ea72d1-6a29-4e9a-8755-b5b48fdf7c25/at_diriyah.jpeg Blog - Why Saudi Arabia? - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/01e98ffa-d335-4f24-9f71-08323305e062/leap_on_the_way.png Blog - Why Saudi Arabia? - Make it stand out A picture I snapped en route to the venue https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/94615ce8-8687-40a0-905b-7ed206b28c5e/coffee.jpeg Blog - Why Saudi Arabia? - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/0a84f01d-2416-45c6-a0cc-c6ed12f2d6fc/Screenshot+2024-07-04+at+00.24.38.png Blog - Why Saudi Arabia? - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/0f2e5dc1-6cdd-4e03-ad70-62c1f14f7c2b/Screenshot+2024-07-05+at+09.32.53.png Blog - Why Saudi Arabia? - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/c4cc634d-2c89-4db4-b91f-faa4c21b73d7/cranes_riyadh.jpeg Blog - Why Saudi Arabia? - Make it stand out I took this picture from my uber (sorry about the dusty window) and shared it with a few people to show them the scale of what is happening in Riyadh. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/bb8124d1-161a-4278-8702-8160e6ea1026/population_pyramid_ksa.png Blog - Why Saudi Arabia? - Make it stand out The population pyramid, sourced from PopulationPyramid.net. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/3b5149f9-7747-428c-b2e8-7cd17c86f88e/GDN_GDN_BMA_Saudi-Arabia-_IAA22_8.jpg Blog - Why Saudi Arabia? - Make it stand out The Saudi pavilion at Expo Dubai. Click on the picture to see more of it. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/e8dee7b3-7c87-42bf-ba87-341305b588c8/Screenshot+2024-07-04+at+13.52.54.png Blog - Why Saudi Arabia? - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/994cb33e-d552-41da-91fe-5a468e1d8faa/San_Francisco_City_population_pyramid_in_2021.svg.png Blog - Why Saudi Arabia? - Make it stand out From Wikipedia https://www.andy-barr.com/blog/why-food-moving-on-from-consumer-code monthly 0.5 2023-05-25 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/c2076388-d6c2-42d9-bf47-e9291f7fef34/ollantaytambo.jpg Blog - Why food? Moving on from consumer code - Make it stand out A view of Ollantaytambo, from a Peruvian government website. My grandfather was born very close to this area. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/49bcfb7d-727d-4002-8389-8eb438b4112c/Tractors_in_Potato_Field.jpeg Blog - Why food? Moving on from consumer code - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.andy-barr.com/blog/updating-your-numerical-intuition monthly 0.5 2023-05-25 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/041f968e-b101-4be3-b4ca-338a33dcd4c1/Screen+Shot+2023-05-24+at+16.39.33.png Blog - Updating your numerical intuition - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/65f34ec6-3708-4351-b49c-b34e96deef55/hectare_400.png Blog - Updating your numerical intuition - Make it stand out From Wikipedia’s page for Hectare. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/e559514c-a9fa-4ac6-a38c-d3ba6e7ead78/VU-Banana-1000x1000.png Blog - Updating your numerical intuition - Make it stand out This picture from Wikimedia is 1,000 by 1,000 pixels, so it covers 1 million pixels. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/916e9e5a-12e1-497c-accf-0efdc0565c0d/time_chart_1.png Blog - Updating your numerical intuition - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/36e193f0-fd1c-48eb-b222-955b962ee9a9/time_chart_2.png Blog - Updating your numerical intuition - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.andy-barr.com/blog/optimizing-your-information-diet-creating-your-own-great-filter monthly 0.5 2023-05-24 https://www.andy-barr.com/blog/millennials-and-why-i-write monthly 0.5 2024-07-08 https://www.andy-barr.com/blog/vat44x58lzvvrt1xi9zxkpzp98f3is monthly 0.5 2023-04-24 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/3edde5a7-ea64-4915-b5f4-bcb76f4a3e3c/ankara_apartments_2.jpeg Blog - Life in a 15 minute city - Make it stand out Near Keçiören, in the north part of Ankara. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/7af21bce-49f6-4523-af9a-8a6b0f4831c3/bloomberg_15.jpeg Blog - Life in a 15 minute city - Make it stand out From this Bloomberg article on 15-minute cities https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/1b0cd0ef-b4c7-40ff-82f5-926b4710e6bd/merkez_ankara.jpeg Blog - Life in a 15 minute city - Make it stand out Merkez Ankara - a rendering of giant development that I regularly pass by. Yes, it is completely surrounded by highways. But it is close to a big mall and a park. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/e9ef568e-cf57-4572-b7df-419d02ea3d0a/hoboken_15_minute_city.png Blog - Life in a 15 minute city - Make it stand out An image from https://www.15minutecity.com/ https://www.andy-barr.com/blog/how-vision-2030-and-the-gcc-will-help-the-world monthly 0.5 2023-04-03 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/9e5e7ce6-2d7e-4e0f-91a9-d6d214eccbd2/Screen+Shot+2023-04-03+at+10.13.30.png Blog - How Vision 2030 and the GCC will help the world - Make it stand out The population of the GCC countries, from World Data, which sums up to ~59 million people. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/959e34ae-dd93-43f6-82be-37eae5d8a364/Screen+Shot+2023-04-03+at+10.55.06.png Blog - How Vision 2030 and the GCC will help the world - Make it stand out The population of Egypt and some other regional countries over time. World Bank data via Google search of “Population of Egypt”. https://www.andy-barr.com/blog/data-lifecycles monthly 0.5 2023-04-02 https://www.andy-barr.com/blog/getting-more-people-involved-in-food-production monthly 0.5 2023-04-02 https://www.andy-barr.com/blog/the-future-of-tech-jobs-for-americans monthly 0.5 2023-03-02 https://www.andy-barr.com/blog/cultivar-names-of-pomegranates-and-figs monthly 0.5 2023-03-29 https://www.andy-barr.com/about daily 0.75 2024-12-18 https://www.andy-barr.com/contact daily 0.75 2022-08-15 https://www.andy-barr.com/plug-ins daily 0.75 2023-01-17 https://www.andy-barr.com/hair-transplant daily 0.75 2024-06-18 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847331546-NBMOOBORXBR1I52QDOEM/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg hair transplant https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847332082-XD1KMA4EER5NVQWQZJ4O/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg hair transplant https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847330913-1F0BEVH4E8EWIS3SJYLB/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg hair transplant https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847330272-BEQUDHMNDH37S90TSA0T/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg hair transplant https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847329019-GP1Z6VXLF9U75MC4JIO0/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg hair transplant https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847328311-R7PAZDQTBOBSEOWC9YQ3/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg hair transplant https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847327684-2C1WKZU35SCT0ZV1OJOX/20140301_Trade-151_0124-copy.jpg hair transplant https://www.andy-barr.com/personal_profile daily 0.75 2024-11-25 https://www.andy-barr.com/abraham-accords-swag daily 0.75 2024-12-28 https://www.andy-barr.com/home daily 1.0 2026-01-05 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/1626873353980-HRJ1Y43267WYTIOKQOPH/AndyBarr_HS280321-10_Color.jpg Home https://www.andy-barr.com/home/data monthly 0.5 2026-01-05 https://www.andy-barr.com/home/cacti monthly 0.5 2022-02-19 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847904251-HVHUK3T1H2QCY05DRHU3/image-asset.jpeg Home - Cacti for food, forage, and fire prevention - Make it stand out. It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847904480-AXE2TZ6WH1YWOYJELYQQ/image-asset.jpeg Home - Cacti for food, forage, and fire prevention - Make it stand out. It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847904674-UXDT58LZUDAEN1C4LIKQ/image-asset.jpeg Home - Cacti for food, forage, and fire prevention - Make it stand out. It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.andy-barr.com/home/american-nuts monthly 0.5 2022-02-20 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847904251-HVHUK3T1H2QCY05DRHU3/image-asset.jpeg Home - Nuts - alternatives from the Americas - Make it stand out. It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847904480-AXE2TZ6WH1YWOYJELYQQ/image-asset.jpeg Home - Nuts - alternatives from the Americas - Make it stand out. It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847904674-UXDT58LZUDAEN1C4LIKQ/image-asset.jpeg Home - Nuts - alternatives from the Americas - Make it stand out. It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.andy-barr.com/home/resins-and-fragrances monthly 0.5 2022-02-19 https://www.andy-barr.com/home/tea-and-alternatives monthly 0.5 2024-08-24 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/15f61ddb-2a9b-4f06-a124-56dc3307aa57/purple_limes_genes.jpeg Home - Teas - Make it stand out An example of a modification that can be made with modern techniques https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/82dd7ef8-bb9a-48f9-bb8b-f66a973bbdbb/yerba_mate_small.jpeg Home - Teas - Ilex paraguianesis ‘Yerba Mate’ This plant is popular throughout the world, but only grown commercially in Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay. Yerba mate has proven to be very cold hardy for me in Seattle and Ankara. My specimens in Ankara handled extended freezes with no problems. My goal is to start trials in the mountains next to the Black Sea tea growing regions in Turkey. There is tons of nearby tea processing infrastructure that could translate nicely for Yerba Mate. I am talking to producers to make this more available for wholesale in the United States. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/583cac20-0b5c-474c-b56e-8d27a329871c/yaupon.jpeg Home - Teas - Ilex vomitoria ‘Yaupon’ Yaupon has a long history of cultivation in North America. The Natives found many uses for the plant, and the early European settlers especially valued its caffeine content. Growers throughout the South of the US are working on creating new brewable products with Yaupon. I am testing out a few trees in Turkey, and hope. Yaupon has a huge variety of forms and sizes - you can find cultivars that are tall, weeping, miniature, compact, and everything in between. Selections have been developed for landscaping, and many people know “Yaupon holly” as a hardy, evergreen hedge. I am generally looking for selections that are best suited for intense tea growing. Given the drought tolerance of established trees, I am also investigating how some larger varieties integrate into permaculture/agroforestry practices. I am keeping as many varieties as I can find in my Seattle garden, and preparing for some experiments in crosses. Propagation by seed is difficult, and I have found that I have had success with thicker cuttings than other plants. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/19b1cd4f-74f0-4c75-b7fa-8b8fad846e1f/guayusa_1.jpeg Home - Teas - Ilex guayusa ‘Guayusa’ There is little data for growing this outside of the Amazon in Ecuador. It has caffeinated leaves and loves humidity. I have found my plants to be surprisingly hardy, surviving dry nights a few degrees below freezing without any damage. Logees has made this available in the United States. It is a funny plant that responds strangely to pruning - with areas far away from the cut turning black. I have a few plants, and on some of them, the trunks remain green for much longer than the others. There is still much to learn about this plant and I am happy to collaborate. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847904480-AXE2TZ6WH1YWOYJELYQQ/image-asset.jpeg Home - Teas - Kudingcha This is a bitter tea that is found in China, Japan, and Korea. In this paper, you see the names Ilex latifolia (Thunb) and Ilex kudingcha (C.J. Tseng). I have looked at different selections of Ilex latifolia across the US and have not been able to replicate the taste from Chinese preparations purchased online. I am very interested in scions of this. Please contact me if you have it available. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847904674-UXDT58LZUDAEN1C4LIKQ/image-asset.jpeg Home - Teas - Aspalathus linearis ‘Rooibos’ This plant needs to be distributed further than its native range. It is hardy and handles conditions of low water well. I am committed to ending the South African monopoly on its production. The small native range of Rooibos is facing risks from climate change. I hope we can work together to make a more resilient future for this amazing plant. I have hundreds of seedlings growing in Turkey and working on importing this to the United States. If you are interested in trialing out this, please reach out and I will keep you posted on the progress. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/1b8aeceb-4a18-45bb-9e00-e8f92d541469/muna-aracari.jpeg Home - Teas - Minthostachys mollis ‘Muña’ This plant needs to be distributed further than its native range. It is a delicious tea from the Andes. Click on the image to learn more from Aracari Travel. https://www.andy-barr.com/home/fruit-breeding-projects monthly 0.5 2026-01-05 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/2baafc89-ead3-4138-849f-90e7db749936/efn_maypop.jpeg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/4c01833c-f909-4da6-9219-87eac16eeb20/purple_boot.jpeg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/189f5058-129b-4d5b-a084-77012df2bc97/red_quince.jpeg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/955a0da9-a7c5-40fc-9649-bc2b43da9885/black_pomegranate_wikipedia.jpg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/382d4832-72d5-4c3c-a185-e9958ac9946e/jubaea_chilensis_hardy_palms.jpeg https://www.andy-barr.com/home/initiatives-to-fund monthly 0.5 2023-09-19 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847904251-HVHUK3T1H2QCY05DRHU3/image-asset.jpeg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847904480-AXE2TZ6WH1YWOYJELYQQ/image-asset.jpeg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847904674-UXDT58LZUDAEN1C4LIKQ/image-asset.jpeg https://www.andy-barr.com/home/tea-and-herb-breeding monthly 0.5 2024-08-24 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/15f61ddb-2a9b-4f06-a124-56dc3307aa57/purple_limes_genes.jpeg Home - Tea and Herb Breeding - Make it stand out An example of a modification that can be made with modern techniques https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/82dd7ef8-bb9a-48f9-bb8b-f66a973bbdbb/yerba_mate_small.jpeg Home - Tea and Herb Breeding - Ilex paraguianesis ‘Yerba Mate’ This plant is popular throughout the world, but only grown commercially in Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay. Yerba mate has proven to be very cold hardy for me in Seattle and Ankara. My specimens in Ankara handled extended freezes with no problems. My goal is to start trials in the mountains next to the Black Sea tea growing regions in Turkey. There is tons of nearby tea processing infrastructure that could translate nicely for Yerba Mate. I am talking to producers to make this more available for wholesale in the United States. I currently grow a few seedlings from Fruitwood Nursery and Restoring Eden. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/583cac20-0b5c-474c-b56e-8d27a329871c/yaupon.jpeg Home - Tea and Herb Breeding - Ilex vomitoria ‘Yaupon’ Yaupon has a long history of cultivation in North America. The Natives found many uses for the plant, and the early European settlers especially valued its caffeine content. Growers throughout the South of the US are working on creating new brewable products with Yaupon. I am testing out a few trees in Turkey, and hope that it can prove to be a useful supplement for those who are solely dependent on Camellia sinensis. Yaupon has a huge variety of forms and sizes - you can find cultivars that are tall, weeping, miniature, compact, and everything in between. Selections have been developed for landscaping, and many people know “Yaupon holly” as a hardy, evergreen hedge. I am looking for selections that are best suited for intense tea growing. Given the drought tolerance of established trees, I am also investigating how some larger varieties integrate into permaculture/agroforestry practices. I am keeping as many varieties as I can find in my Seattle garden, and preparing for some experiments in crosses. Propagation by seed is difficult, and I have found that I have had success with thicker cuttings than other plants. I currently grow the following selections: Ilex vomitoria “Micron” “gremicr” Ilex vomitoria “Chiapas” (from Sacred Succulents) Ilex vomitoria “Panhandle Gold” Ilex vomitoria “William Fleming” Ilex vomitoria “Bordeaux” Ilex vomitoria “Nana” Ilex vomitoria" “Stokes dwarf” Selections of yaupon are a bit hard to find, and many nurseries don’t ship them out of the south (they are primarily used as landscaping plants). Furthermore, they take forever to root and they are very sensitive when they are young. They make attractive berries (and there are beautiful selections with red and yellow berries), but the seeds can take years to germinate. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/19b1cd4f-74f0-4c75-b7fa-8b8fad846e1f/guayusa_1.jpeg Home - Tea and Herb Breeding - Ilex guayusa ‘Guayusa’ There is little data for growing this outside of the Amazon in Ecuador. It has caffeinated leaves and loves humidity. I have found my plants to be surprisingly hardy, surviving dry nights a few degrees below freezing without any damage. Logees has made this available in the United States. It is a funny plant that responds strangely to pruning - with areas far away from the cut turning black. I have a few plants, and on some of them, the trunks remain green for much longer than the others. There is still much to learn about this plant and I am happy to collaborate. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847904480-AXE2TZ6WH1YWOYJELYQQ/image-asset.jpeg Home - Tea and Herb Breeding - Kudingcha This is a bitter tea that is found in China, Japan, and Korea. In this paper, you see the names Ilex latifolia (Thunb) and Ilex kudingcha (C.J. Tseng). I have looked at different selections of Ilex latifolia across the US and have not been able to replicate the taste from Chinese preparations purchased online. I am very interested in scions of this. Please contact me if you have it available. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5ec321c2af33de48734cc929/1589847904674-UXDT58LZUDAEN1C4LIKQ/image-asset.jpeg Home - Tea and Herb Breeding - Aspalathus linearis ‘Rooibos’ This plant needs to be distributed further than its native range. It is hardy and handles conditions of low water well. I am committed to ending the South African monopoly on its production. The small native range of Rooibos is facing risks from climate change. I hope we can work together to make a more resilient future for this amazing plant. I have hundreds of seedlings growing in Turkey and working on importing this to the United States. If you are interested in trialing out this, please reach out and I will keep you posted on the progress. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/1b8aeceb-4a18-45bb-9e00-e8f92d541469/muna-aracari.jpeg Home - Tea and Herb Breeding - Minthostachys mollis ‘Muña’ This plant needs to be distributed further than its native range. It is a delicious tea from the Andes. Click on the image to learn more from Aracari Travel. https://www.andy-barr.com/home/ornamental-breeding monthly 0.5 2024-08-25 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/c9c0a204-ec1f-4a50-a54c-bd3f74428d7c/alstro_field.jpeg Home - Ornamental Projects - Alstroemeria and Bomarea Alstroemeria are one of the well-known plants of Peru, and they are surprisingly hardy! They grow easily in Seattle and come back each year. You can grow them out here in most soils without ever having to even water them and they have no problems. They make wonderful flowers that last for a good amount of time and they are favorites of hummingbirds. They come in almost every imaginable color and you have very tall and compact forms. As such there is great potential for breeding them. The seeds take forever to germinate, but they are the kind of thing that you can set and forget and get a great rate of germination. I am working on mixing the fragrant gene from “Sweet Laura” and “Glory of the Andes” into more colors. I particularly like the reds and purples of the genus. Bomarea are a wonderful related species that is also from South America. They are not as hardy as Alstroemeria and their roots are much more sensitive to disturbances. They are still beautiful and worth growing, but you can end up with the heartbreak of a zone-pusher if you don’t have them in a pot that you can bring in. Bomarea are also much more difficult to propagate than Alstroemeria, though I hope to help make tissue cultured plants available in the US in the future. I am working on crossing them with each other and with Alstroemeria. These are the following Bomarea that are available in the USA: Bomarea pardina Bomarea lutea Bomarea edulis Bomarea x Alstroemeria Bomarea “fiesta” Bomarea multiflora https://www.andy-barr.com/home/ankara-garden monthly 0.5 2022-02-19 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/1626873352727-Q850G89C3J4UR5U5C75J/262FF19F-3067-4E2B-AC1A-AC845BA6E1C2.jpeg Home - Ankara Garden https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/1626873352731-85ZQ1MKCGLVE9NQ58487/F1C366E2-B41A-43C9-A1F7-20D551941F43.jpeg Home - Ankara Garden - Araucaria and Chilean Berberis Araucaria araucana has found popularity around the world for its dramatic appearance and easy growing. Araucaria angustifolia is popular in south Brazil, and produces big, tasty nuts. The one in this picture has survived a bite from a curious puppy. I am working to bring named cultivars of both Araucaria to Turkey and am hoping to trial them in different regions (please email me if interested!). Berberis microphylla (called Calafate in Chile) is a tasty berry with high antioxidant levels. The cuttings have grown rapidly under full sun. I plan to have more varieties and volume of Chilean berries for next year. I am most excited about Maqui, which is known for its health properties and should do well in cultivation here. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/1626873352734-C64VUJNQV1OYILUS2OFW/F4CBEDE4-66C7-49B6-AB58-7963B79B9D65.jpeg Home - Ankara Garden - Colorful Potatoes and Peruvian tubers Inspired from my grandfather, who came from the Cusco area of Peru, I grow a variety of red-fleshed (Crimson King, AmaRosa, All Red, Adirondack Red, Red Thumb) and purple-fleshed potatoes (Purple Fiesta, TerraRosa, Purple Majesty, All Blue, Adirondack Blue), and have made relationships to import seed potato to Turkey for the 2022 growing season. Chefs, processors, and growers, contact me if you are interested in growing or preparing these next year. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/1626873352719-6R3M7IQD2ZCV9WE0XJ7H/B402C1AF-CCAD-4229-8CF6-EA5E33EFDAF6.jpeg Home - Ankara Garden https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/1626873352737-Q537LO0A1LFWKQ4XVBOX/7003624A-F1F9-47FE-A225-E85C2A35C243.jpeg Home - Ankara Garden - Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Cras mattis consectetur purus sit amet fermentum. Ficus sycomorus and Ficus austrocaledonica https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/1626873352724-ZXCXDCS6CZNECM2EG1SG/32C0541B-7FF1-4A4C-8EAD-0CD8389AED30.jpeg Home - Ankara Garden Luma apiculata and Peumus boldo - two Chilean plants with edible fruits that are used in tea and South American medicine. https://www.andy-barr.com/home/reforestation monthly 0.5 2022-02-19 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/69926474-03da-485f-b9c4-41d69450b7b6/E817559B-3663-44A3-BAAC-512A5BCE6268.jpeg Home - Reforestation and Afforestation https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/875bc99f-01dc-42b8-839c-3438f1136540/02DD1D3A-5289-4AB2-944F-D2366179914A.jpeg Home - Reforestation and Afforestation https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/221d735d-b0ad-4a3e-a3e8-4dc1885191b5/BD1F5CD0-89F2-45BC-9797-511FFD566E8F.jpeg Home - Reforestation and Afforestation https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/628f2643-90c1-4ea7-a5ac-f0f0eb36a668/4E72A7B5-FB88-4FAD-AF08-121C5A6C5D9D.jpeg Home - Reforestation and Afforestation https://www.andy-barr.com/home/connected-garden monthly 0.5 2022-02-19 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/1626873352750-7Z4D3MBLL5VVIZL621ZZ/73451D2A-B582-464A-A1F3-A816EDB7501B.jpeg Home - Connected Garden Setup - Govee Tools Govee’s WiFi temperature and humidity sensors have been extremely helpful in monitoring a sunroom, tropical room, my houseplants, and my outdoor garden. The data is easy to export and I have found them to be reliable and consistent with other sensors. Setup of the devices and the app are easy to use too. I also have been saved by their water detector on multiple occasions. I highly recommend them. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/1626873352755-CXJPLRSV6Z92NJS1EF6T/CE8A1A97-4EDD-46B1-9FE4-22EB9EAAE36F.jpeg Home - Connected Garden Setup - Ambient Weather I have a few of their personal weather stations. This has been incredibly helpful in understanding temperature, wind direction, total rain amounts, and other localized events. I highly recommend this, and your data helps to inform predictions across the network. https://www.andy-barr.com/home/seattle-garden monthly 0.5 2022-02-19 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/1626873352696-4Z4C9DQ7S44I1Q2HNM1S/cacti.jpeg Home - Seattle Garden A very cold-hardy Opuntia from Utah in the ground. Opuntia fragilis x erinacea 'San Juan Grey' from Cistus. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/1626873352693-UNJIZS0MGA6KSWCVEPEH/butia.jpeg Home - Seattle Garden - Take only memories. Leave nothing but footprints. –Chief Seattle https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/1626873352702-WKZV0SWUL5DEERSB6S40/fig_2.jpeg Home - Seattle Garden My garden contains over 40 varieties of fig. Growing figs in the Pacific Northwest is easy, though you can greatly improve your yields by cultivar selection, soil amending, and choosing the location with the most sun. I emphasize cultivar selection because many varieties will never ripen fully if you go for an in-ground tree. We have many local experts who have weighed in over many forum posts and YouTube videos over specific selections that do well in the Pacific Northwest. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/1626873352699-FJ5PSEC6UGXOD3589LAN/pomegranate.jpeg Home - Seattle Garden - Pomegranate An early fruiting variety from Turkmenistan. Many cultivars from Dr Gregory Levin’s legendary research station have made their way around the world. The fruit struggles to ripen in Seattle, but it is still worth growing for ornamental value. https://www.andy-barr.com/home/palms-for-food monthly 0.5 2022-03-08 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/28772685-2392-400c-a464-019bbf8ada44/euterpe_small.jpeg Home - Palms for food - beyond dates - Make it stand out One of the Euterpe edulis plants I brought to Turkey https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/bc0bbbf9-13ea-41b9-8144-762a66b049a9/butia_capitata_fruit.jpg Home - Palms for food - beyond dates - Make it stand out Tasty fruit from Butia capitata, full of vitamin C and pectin. Photo courtesy of IPlantz. Click on the picture to go to their page. https://www.andy-barr.com/home/llm-consulting monthly 0.5 2024-08-22 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/c7893531-9119-4438-a9c7-246dd98a165e/Screenshot+2024-08-24+at+08.23.42.png https://www.andy-barr.com/home/time-series monthly 0.5 2024-08-25 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60f81e0802437e552459adc0/c7893531-9119-4438-a9c7-246dd98a165e/Screenshot+2024-08-24+at+08.23.42.png