Home Front Home Front (December 17, 2004)

"GARDEN OF EATIN'" . . . Common Ground is offering a series of classes by Margaret Lloyd focusing on the Grow Biointensive method of raising food, which aims to maximize land, water and energy resources. The series begins Jan. 22 with Introduction to Grow Biointensive Techniques; Feb. 12, Double Digging and Bed Preparation; March 12, Seed Propagation and Transplanting; April 2, Soil and Composting with demonstration; April 23, Nurturing Your Garden for Bountiful Harvests. Classes are held 9:15 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Saturdays at Common Ground, 559 College Ave., Palo Alto. Fee is $125 for the series. Pre-registration is required, and only 20 participants will be accepted. For information, call (650) 493-6072 or visit www.commongroundinpaloalto.org.

GET OFF THE ROOF, RUDOLPH . . . If you're plagued by deer nibbling your favorite plants, you might want to visit www.yerbabuenanursery.com and check out the list of deer-resistant plants. Planting these may not be enough, Kathy Crane, owner of Yerba Buena, notes; some individual plant caging and deer repellent spray may still be needed. Among the plants listed are: fir, vine maple, yarrow, wild ginger, wild lilac, bleeding heart, wild strawberry, toyon, lobelia, lupine, mint, monkeyflower, gooseberry, verbena, yucca, and of course, yerba buena.

CONCERNED ABOUT FLOOD RISK? . . . FEMA's National Flood Insurance Program has a Web site, www.FloodSmart.gov, and phone number (800-427-2419) to help people assess their risk from floods, figure out what to do to prevent flooding and gather information about flood insurance. The site lets you plug in your address to determine risk, and see if your community is a local participant in the program (Palo Alto and Menlo Park are, as well as Mountain View, East Palo Alto, Portola Valley and Woodside).

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