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MAKING GOOD DIRT ... Master Gardener and composter Terry Lyngso of Lyngso Garden Materials will teach a workshop on "Building Healthy Soil" on Saturday, April 3, from 1 to 3:30 p.m. at the Peninsula Conservation Center, 3921 E. Bayshore Road, Palo Alto. Part of Acterra's Earth-friendly Landscape series, the class will focus on why healthy soil is important. Fee is $15, or $10 for students and Acterra members. Information: clairee@acterra.org. Register: www.acterra.org/stewardship.

MEDICINAL PLANTS ... Tellur Fenner, owner/director of the Blue Wind Botanical Medicine Clinic in Oakland, will offer a class called "Bountiful Spring — Medicinal Plants of California" on Saturday, April 3, from 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. at Common Ground Educational Center, 559 College Ave., Palo Alto. A clinical herbalist/educator who has traveled extensively throughout the U.S., Fenner will highlight taxonomical and chemical characteristics of medicinal plants in the morning, then take participants on a walk while addressing how to identify, harvest, prepare and use medicinal plants. Cost is $65. Information: 650-493-6072 or www.commongroundinpaloalto.org or bountifulspring.eventbrite.com.

CLASSIC CHOCOLATE ... Cindy Roberts will teach a class on "Chocolate Cakes and Creative Decorating" on Wednesday, April 7, from 6:30 to 9 p.m. at Palo Alto High School, Room 103, 50 Embarcadero Road, Palo Alto. The class will include decorating techniques: stencils; marbling, chocolate rolls, walls, triangles and leaves. Cost is $50. Information: 650-329-3752 or www.paadultschool.org.

THEY'RE THE TOPS ... Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage noted that nine of its Menlo Park Realtors ranked in the top 1 percent of the company's agents in Northern California for 2009 sales. Top sellers included Keri Nicholas, Tom LeMieux and Hossein Djalali of the Menlo Park-Santa Cruz Avenue office, and Hugh Cornish, Hanna Shacham, Elaine White, Janet Dore, Steve Bellumori and Pat Hammer of the Menlo Park-El Camino Real office. Nicholas ranked seventh and Cornish ninth among the top-producing agents. Realtors Erika Demma, Ginny Kavanaugh and Celeste Henzel from the Woodside office also ranked in the top 1 percent.

RESTORE HABITAT ... On the second and fourth Saturdays, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., volunteers work with Acterra to restore habitat at the Pearson-Arastradero Preserve (1530 Arastradero Road, Palo Alto) and local creeks. Gloves, tools, snacks and training are provided. Tasks include removing invasive plants, collecting seeds, spreading mulch and planting native grasses. Wear long sleeves and long pants and bring a hat and reusable water bottle. Information: www.acterra.org/stewardship.