Where is the best place to live?

If you're independently wealthy, you could try the SF Bay Area, out by the coast or something like that.

That's pretty busy out there, but I am not independently wealthy anyhow. I am very comfortable. I was thinking maybe Redding.

Only if you can go up the mountains and out of the "HEAT". Redding puts you about an hour and a half north of Sacramento. Emilie (mleblanca) in Chico could give you a better idea of the region. San Luis Obispo County, Humbolt, Sierra Nevadas above the heat, near Sacramento or Fresno. The "Bay Area", for new arrivals, is only for the very rich ($500,000 and $traight up, for a lot and a house in the out lying regions, much less two acres).

Pescadero is nice and slow, but close enough if you want to speed up. Lot of farming out there. I'm afraid to even ask what the land prices are out there. Redding is going to be HOT in the summer.

Central Texas.

Generally speaking, east of IH35 is less hilly, less trees, more precipitation, deeper natural topsoil. West of IH35 is more hilly as you go west, more trees, less precipitation, topsoil depth varies highly and more prevalent in bottom land.

Would be culture shock for a southern californian... Dave

try spain. good prices on lan

-- mor

Any city names?

Ever hear of a little place called Austin? City motto: "Keep Austin Weird". That just sounds so Californian. They have a University, a culture scene, and music. I'm not planing on leaving northern California but if I were, I'd check it out. Oldest, continuously running business in Austin is Schultz's biergarten. Fredricksburg, not far from Austin, still wears its' German heritage with pride.

So it's Texas. Ol' "Good hair" can't be any worse than A'nold.

Gut Gluck er, good luck.

West of Santa Rosa, near Guerneville.

That looks nice there. Is there a lot of deer?

Sonoma is basically a rural county, with a lot of vineyards, once you get away from the Hwy. 101 corridor that runs through it. Our dogs chased a fawn out of the yard a coupe of days ago. There are fewer deer that ten years ago. Howevre, my mother-in-law lives in a retirement community and deer there browse the lawns and bushes daily.

I live West of IH-35 in the hill country.

No tornadoes there.

Most of the twisters stay right on or just East of IH-35. I think the hills in the hill country break up the air currents.

Might be why property values are higher...

Granted, the soil is not as good (lots of limestone/rocks) and the plains are alluvial topsoil, but I just use raised beds. Cotton, Sorghum, corn and other grains grow well on the East side.

I guess it depends on what you are looking for. I just like the loooooong growing season!

I have a pair of 'mater plants out front in a 25 gallon pot right now and there are some green fruits on it, but I'll probably have to move it into the greenhouse shortly and set up the winter heat bulb for it.

I should have ripe fruits soon, and more blooms later to give me ripe fruits in March. I just listen to the radio for frost warnings.

Southwestern Mexico if you are going to leave the US. ;-)

Well, I live in the Austin/San Antonio area, but the bedroom communities have better land prices. ;-)

Just stay out of Tornado alley, per previous posts!

Austin ain't so "little" any more!

ROFL!!!

You want deer? It can make gardening a challenge. ;-D

We have a local herd that grazes across the street from me.

The dogs keep then out of the gardens!

We also have raccoons, squirrels, ringtails, possums, coyotes, puma, skunks, rats, etc.

Girl, I'm just funnin'. I've seen the pictures;-)