Home Front Home Front (May 14, 2004)

CONSERVATION OR GARDENING? . . . Bart O'Brien, director of horticulture at the Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden in Clarement, Calif., will talk about the intersection of conservation and gardening tonight at 7:30 p.m. at the Los Altos Library program room, 13 S. San Antonio Road, Los Altos. The seventh annual Brenda Butner Memorial Lecture is free and open to the public. For information, contact Judy Fenerty at judy@fenerty.com or (408) 378-6272 or visit www.cnps-scv.org.

BERRIES AND MORE . . . If you missed Nancy Garrison's talk on growing blueberries in our local climate, she'll be offering a class on "Strawberries, Paw Paws, Mulberries and More" tomorrow from 10:30 a.m. to noon at Common Ground, 559 College Ave., Palo Alto. Garrison grows 80 varieties of fruit in her San Jose home, and will talk about everything from pluots to passionfruit. Fee is $17. For information, call (650) 493-6072 or visit www.commongroundinpaloalto.org.

FESTIVAL SEASON KICK-OFF . . . Mountain View's A La Carte and Art tomorrow and Sunday kicks off the Bay Area festival season. The juried show features more than 200 artists along Castro Street -- between Church Street and Evelyn Avenue -- in downtown Mountain View. Hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. both days. Admission and parking are free. For information, call (650) 964-3395 or visit www.miramarevents.com.

LOTS OF FLOWERS . . . Jerry Harris will talk about "Deciduous Azaleas," telling how hybridizing can create trusses with as many as 20 large flowers on them, on Wednesday, May 19, at 7:30 p.m. The De Anza Chapter of the American Rhododendron Society meets at the Hillview Community Center, Room 16, 97 Hillview Ave., Los Altos. For information, visit www.deanza-ars.com.

ALL IN ONE DAY . . . Palo Alto Weekly columnist Kit Davey, Allied member ASID, will offer a one-day class called "Transform Your Home in a Day" on Wednesday, May 19, from 7 to 9 p.m. at Foothill College, 12345 Moody Road, Los Altos Hills. The class will deal with redecorating without buying new furnishings, creating a floor plan, balancing color and accessorizing. Fee is $45, which includes materials. For information, call (408) 864-8817.

OH, JOY . . . Patricia Becker, manager of Common Ground Organic Gardening Supply, will talk about "The Joys of Organic Gardening" in a community forum on Thursday, May 20, 7:30 p.m., at the East West Bookshop, 324 Castro St., Mountain View. The talk, which will encompass composting, mulching, seed saving and natural pest control, is free. To reserve tickets, call (800) 909-6161.

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