Almonds faced the agricultural version of the water-shaming that was directed at wastrel urbanites in California, called out as one of the thirstiest crops on the planet. Yet almond acreage has gone up every year during the drought and the harvest consistently is larger than before the drought, says Gizmodo. The increase in acreage may be due to high market prices for almonds. To growers, they offer a better return than other crops. “But the much larger part of the answer is not found in dollars, it’s in the plant itself,” says Gizmodo. Almond trees produce more nuts as they mature, peaking around age 12. “The boom of almonds that we’re seeing today is not due to the most recent plantings—it’s due to the years before, most of them pre-drought.”