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VOLUNTEERS NEEDED . . . Hidden Villa Farm in Los Altos Hills is currently seeking volunteers for its Community Supported Agriculture Program. Volunteers are needed on Wednesdays from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. to help with planting and harvesting, followed by a potluck lunch with the farmers and the other volunteers. To volunteer, call 949-8655.

ORGANIC WINTER GARDENING . . . The Stanford Community Farm will host an organic gardening demonstration and workshop on Saturday, Oct. 18, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Horticulturalist Henry Bruski will cover subjects such as bed preparation, compost making, seed propagation, cuttings and seed saving. Hands-on demonstrations will guide participants through the stages of planting, care and harvest for a variety of winter-hardy plants. Suggested donation is $30. To register, call 1-800-253-8710.

THE VIRTUES OF COMPOST . . . Common Ground hosts a lecture on composting by Jan Buck on Saturday, Oct. 18, from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Learn about the virtues of compost, how to build and maintain a compost pile, and how to tell when it's done. The class will build a compost pile (participants are encouraged to bring a 5-gallon bucket of "green" material such as grass clippings or weeds). Cost is $10. To register, call 328-6752.

AUTUMN COLOR . . . The Elizabeth F. Gamble Garden Center will offer a class on enhancing late autumn gardens with variegated plants on Saturday, Oct. 18, from 9 to 10:30 a.m. Led by horticulturalist Don Rose, discussion will focus on plant material from "Cotoneaster horizontalis Variegata" to "Cornus albus Gouchaulti." Cost for the class is $15, $12 for members. For information, call 329-1356.

CAPITAL GAINS LAW . . . A free seminar on how new capital gains laws will affect you will be presented on Wednesday, Oct. 22, at 7 p.m. Presented by legal expert Bruce Freidman and Alain Pinel Realtors' Jack Wagstaff and Christina Luiz, the seminar will be held at the offices of Alain Pinel Realtors at 578 University Ave. in Palo Alto. Reservations must be made by calling 323-1119, ext. 375.

NATIVE PLANT SALE . . . The Santa Clara Valley Chapter of the California Native Plant Society will hold its fall sale at the Peninsula Conservation Center on Saturday, Oct. 25, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The sale will include a number of easy-to-grow California natives that thrive on our hard adobe soils and survive dry summers without extra watering. These include sages, buckwheats, monkeyflowers, lupine, penstemon and native bunch grasses such as deer grass. For more information, call plant sale coordinator Don Mayall at 856-7579.

Send notices of news and events related to real estate, interior design, home improvement and gardening to Home Front, Palo Alto Weekly, P.O. Box 1610, Palo Alto, CA 94302. Deadline is Thursday at 5 p.m.

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