Complete Worktree Workflow for Blog Posts

One-Time Setup

mkdir ~/devtree

Agent Instructions: Creating a New Worktree

When user says “create a new tree” for feature [feature_name]:

Phase 1: Setup (default on command invocation)

1. Ensure ~/devtree/ exists

2. List existing worktrees:

   git worktree list

3. Determine next tree number:

   • If no trees exist in ~/devtree/ → use tree1
   • If tree1_* and tree2_* exist → use tree3
   • Always increment from the highest existing number

4. Create the worktree:

   git worktree add ~/devtree/tree[N]_[feature_name] -b feature/[feature_name]

5. Copy dependencies from main repo (saves reinstall time):

   cp -r ~/Documents/github_local/pascalandy-blog-paper/node_modules ~/devtree/tree[N]_[feature_name]/
   cp -r ~/Documents/github_local/pascalandy-blog-paper/.astro ~/devtree/tree[N]_[feature_name]/ 2>/dev/null || true

6. Confirm and report:

   • Run git worktree list to confirm
   • Report assigned port: 4320 + tree_number (tree1=4321, tree2=4322, etc.)

Phase 2: Work (after setup completes)

7. Do the work in ~/devtree/tree[N]_[feature_name]
8. Commit changes atomically as you go
9. Report back what was created/modified

Phase 3: Publish (when user says “ready” or “publish”)

10. Rebase on latest main:

    cd ~/devtree/tree[N]_[feature_name]
    git fetch origin
    git rebase origin/main

11. Push and create PR:

    git push -u origin feature/[feature_name]
    gh pr create --title "Add: [feature_name]" --body "New content/feature: [feature_name]"

12. Report PR URL to user

Phase 4: Cleanup (after PR is merged)

13. Update local main:

    cd ~/Documents/github_local/pascalandy-blog-paper
    git pull origin main

14. Remove worktree and branch:

    git worktree remove ~/devtree/tree[N]_[feature_name]
    git branch -d feature/[feature_name]

Port Assignment

Pattern: 4320 + tree_number

Example: First Tree

User: “Create a new tree for blue-sky”

# Agent runs:
git worktree list
# Output shows only main repo, no trees in ~/devtree/

# Agent creates:
git worktree add ~/devtree/tree1_blue-sky -b feature/blue-sky

# Agent copies dependencies (no reinstall needed):
cp -r ~/Documents/github_local/pascalandy-blog-paper/node_modules ~/devtree/tree1_blue-sky/
cp -r ~/Documents/github_local/pascalandy-blog-paper/.astro ~/devtree/tree1_blue-sky/ 2>/dev/null || true

Example: Third Tree

User: “Create a new tree for yellow-sun”

# Agent runs:
git worktree list
# Output shows:
# ~/Documents/github_local/pascalandy-blog-paper  main
# ~/devtree/tree1_blue-sky                        feature/blue-sky
# ~/devtree/tree2_green-field                     feature/green-field

# Agent creates:
git worktree add ~/devtree/tree3_yellow-sun -b feature/yellow-sun

# Agent copies dependencies:
cp -r ~/Documents/github_local/pascalandy-blog-paper/node_modules ~/devtree/tree3_yellow-sun/
cp -r ~/Documents/github_local/pascalandy-blog-paper/.astro ~/devtree/tree3_yellow-sun/ 2>/dev/null || true

Directory Structure

After creating 3 worktrees:

~/devtree/
├── tree1_blue-sky/      # feature/blue-sky     (port 4321 if running server)
├── tree2_green-field/   # feature/green-field  (port 4322 if running server)
└── tree3_yellow-sun/    # feature/yellow-sun   (port 4323 if running server)

~/Documents/github_local/
└── pascalandy-blog-paper/   # main branch (port 4320)

Daily Workflow

Working on posts:

# Open each in separate VS Code windows
code ~/devtree/tree1_blue-sky
code ~/devtree/tree2_green-field
code ~/devtree/tree3_yellow-sun

Committing as you go:

cd ~/devtree/tree1_blue-sky
git add .
git commit -m "fix typos in blue-sky"

# ... later that day ...
git add .
git commit -m "rewrite intro section"

Dev Server and Previewing Posts

Default approach: Run dev server only in main repo.

The worktrees at ~/devtree/ are just for editing files. You don’t run a server there.

~/Documents/github_local/pascalandy-blog-paper/   # main branch
└── runs dev server at localhost:4320

~/devtree/tree1_blue-sky/      # just edit files here
~/devtree/tree2_green-field/   # just edit files here
~/devtree/tree3_yellow-sun/    # just edit files here

To preview a post before publishing:

# In your main repo (where dev server is running)
cd ~/Documents/github_local/pascalandy-blog-paper

# Temporarily merge the branch (without committing)
git merge feature/blue-sky --no-commit --no-ff

# Preview at localhost:4320 (server already running)

# When done previewing, abort the merge
git merge --abort

Your main repo stays on main, server keeps running, you just temporarily pull in the changes to preview them.

Alternative: Run dev server directly in a worktree on its assigned port:

cd ~/devtree/tree1_blue-sky
bun run dev --port 4321

Git History After Merging Posts

main: A---B---C---D (blue-sky merged)---E (green-field merged)---F (yellow-sun merged)

Clean. Linear. Each post merged one after another.

Useful Commands

# List all worktrees
git worktree list

# Remove a worktree after merging
git worktree remove ~/devtree/tree1_blue-sky

# Clean up if you manually deleted a worktree folder
git worktree prune

# See all branches
git branch -a

Key Rules

Dependency Management

On worktree creation: Dependencies are copied from main repo automatically.

When to re-sync dependencies:

If package.json changes in main (new packages added), re-copy to worktrees:

# From main repo after pulling changes with new dependencies
bun install
cp -r ~/Documents/github_local/pascalandy-blog-paper/node_modules ~/devtree/tree1_[feature]/

What gets copied:

Not copied (regenerated as needed):

• dist/ - build output
• .vercel/ - deployment cache