Got Pumpkin Pie? Thank a Bee!

Would pumpkin pie be as plentiful without the diligent efforts of pumpkin-pollinating bees? Perhaps not.

Agricultural Research Service (ARS) entomologist James Cane and his colleagues are discovering more about America’s native bees that pollinate pumpkins, other squashes, and gourds. Most of these bees are members of the genus Peponapis or the genus Xenoglossa, according to Cane. He’s based at the agency’s Pollinating Insects Biology, Management and Systematics Research Unit in Logan, Utah.

Cane has shown, for the first time, that male Peponapis pruinosa play a surprisingly significant role in pollinating the blossoms of yellow summer squash. In the past, less than 10 percent of pollination has been attributed to male bees.
With both male and female bees on the job, fewer bees overall would be needed, according to Cane. That’s a plus for growers and beekeepers because it suggests that increasingly scarce, in-demand hives of honey bees could be freed up for work elsewhere.

Read more about this research in the November/December 2008 issue of Agricultural Research magazine.

Pomegranate Tasting at Wolfskill

The tasting took place in the little house you first encounter as you drive in, and it was packed! I counted at least 100 people at one point, most not from CRFG, and more kept coming. I asked Jeff Moersfelder if he knew why there were so many, and he said it was partly that more people were growing pomegranates these days (15,000 acres in the Central Valley, way up from just a few years ago) and the growers were passing the word on to their neighbors, partly that the word went around in UC Extension circles, and, especially, among the Master Gardeners. In any case, it was quite a mob.

They had laid out a lovely display of 17 pomegranates (bowls of arils and whole fruit) and half a dozen non-astringent persimmons (slices, whole fruit, and beautiful fall foliage) on tables in the middle of the room. There were forms for taking notes, and a tally sheet where they asked people to write their favorites. It looked as though the pomegranates Ariana , Ink, and Parfianka were in the lead, although my favorite was Molla Nepes. I liked that one because the flavor was strong, not too sweet, and had a good “sustain,” whereas the others faded quickly. My favorite from last year, Al-sirin-nar, was not on the table this time. Izu was the clear favorite among the persimmons.

Malli Aradhya spoke very briefly. He said the pomegranate has been around for at least 10,000 years. There are pomegranates that can grow in almost any climate, and yet all that variety is contained within only one species, the only one in the genus Punica. You can read more about their collection here.

After an hour or so they began loading up the vans, to ferry people out to the trees of pomegranates and persimmons, where we were invited to take as much fruit as we wanted. The only request was that people not take too much from any one tree, so that everyone could get some of the good ones. Some people managed to sneak out there in their private cars, and some were so impatient they walked rather than wait for the vans, which were constantly shuttling people back and forth. Some people took home buckets and buckets of fruit, some just a few, but for all, as usual, it was a real treat to be able to stroll through all the trees and see the many varieties of fruit “on the hoof.”

Malli said, seeing the huge turnout, that they were thinking of turning the tasting into a pomegranate festival. Click here to go to the website of the Wolfskill germplasm repository.

Aftermath.

Scientists Pit Fungus against Apple Pest

A cocktail of gaseous compounds emitted by a beneficial fungus may offer a way to biologically fumigate stored apples, ridding them of codling moth larvae.

Click here to read more.

Photo by Scott Bauer

Wolfskill Fig Tasting

We had a luxurious fig tasting at Wolfskill yesterday, under the 150 year-old olive trees which are, according to Ray Bruman, "like something out of Tolkein."

The good folks there had already laid out both figs and grapes for tasting. Very attractive - people were buzzing around with their cameras. The staff spoke briefly about their programs, figs and grapes in particular, including the startling (to me) fact that there is no organized breeding program for figs. Anywhere.

Then we began tasting. Figs: 'Ischia Black,' 'King,' 'Violette de Bordeaux,' 'Santa Cruz Dark,' 'Zidi,' 'Kadota 1,' 'California Brown Turkey,' and 'Calimyrna.' The favorite seemed to be 'Zidi.' Orchard manager Howard Garrison again presented his legendary grilled figs, 'Excel' stuffed with goat cheese and wrapped in prosciutto, and 'California Brown Turkey' with walnuts. It was interesting to compare the tastes of the grilled and fresh 'California Brown Turkey' - completely different.

And grapes too - a wonderful assortment: V. vinifera 'Autumn Black,' 'Chasselas Rouge' (an old classic), 'Alicante Bouschet,' 'Pirobelle' (very richly sweet), 'Longyan' (thought by some to taste like lychees), and 'Sultanina Marble' (fruit green flecked with brown, variegated foliage); V. labrusca 'Woodruff;' and, a hybrid, 'Muscat Angel.'

Disappointed not to be "out in the field"? Not to worry! At last year's tasting someone drove over and broke some irrigation risers so they didn't want us all driving out there ourselves. Instead, we piled into air-conditioned vans for the trip out to the trees. We enjoyed a running commentary on the various blocks of trees as we went (lots more persimmons scheduled to be planted! pomegranate tasting coming up....), and once there they invited us to sample all the figs we wanted from the trees.

It was hotter out there, so we didn't stay long. They drove us back to the parking area under the olives, where the top temperature inside a parked car was 85F.

Fruit from Frieda Kahlo

I went to the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art today, which has a big exhibit of the paintings of Frieda Kahlo. I discovered that if you wait until one-half hour before closing time, entry to the museum is free, including special exhibits if they have room--which they did.

Almost the first painting I saw after getting off the elevator was a portrait of Luther Burbank, looking a little like Mr. Sycamore.




















Not long after, I came to a painting of Pitahayas!















And later still, some still lifes with fruit. (I've added a couple of extras here that aren't in this exhibit.) Rare fruit partout!

Jakfruit Tasting on youtube

Click here.

---

Agronomist Francisco Vázquez checks immature jackfruit from the exotic fruits collection. Photo by Scott Bauer

NASA Says Martian Soil Suitable for Asparagus

Read all about it here. Maybe CRFG should send a representative on the next probe.

Speaking of asparagus, on those hot days we had a couple of weeks ago my asparagus plants were mobbed by honeybees (well, as much as anything is mobbed by honeybees these days). They didn't seem well suited--they really had to jam their heads into the flowers. I had never seen that before.

Pawpaw Development in Ohio

" native Ohio tree, once farmed by American Indians on large plantations for its fruit and medicinal benefits, is being re-introduced to horticulture for preservation and as a potential niche market crop. "
.... read all about it here....

Paul Thomson obituary

The SF Chronicle has reprinted this obituary from the LA Times: Click here

Rare Fruit Music

"Charles Amirkhanian, the former music director at KPFA, will perform a text/sound piece titled "Quince Quinoa," comprised of the names of all the exotic foods he's eaten in his travels around the world."

This is in a piece by Martin Snapp in the San Jose Mercury News about the upcoming Garden of Memory concert.

This is a fabulous event in a fabulous building. Banana trees inside too!

Oldest Cultivated Fruit Tree in U.S.

Several years ago, at a Festival of Fruit in southern California, Joseph D. Postman spoke of (among other things) the oldest cultivated fruit tree in the US. I found this info from him on the net:

“During the Centennial Celebration in Danvers, Massachusetts in June 1852, the Endicott Pear Tree was heralded as "probably the oldest cultivated fruit bearing tree in New England." At that time the pear tree was over 200 years old! It had been planted by the first governor of Massachusetts, John Endicott. One hundred and fifty years have passed since that proclamation was made and the Endicott Pear Tree is still producing fruit. It is very unlikely that any other cultivated fruit tree in North America is as old. As I write this in August 2002, the Endicott Pear Tree is approximately 372 years old!

“A clone of the Endicott Pear is now growing at the NCGR [in Corvallis, Oregon] and is large enough to begin bearing fruit. The fruit is of no particular consequence, according to U.P. Hedrick. It is medium in size, unattractive, and coarse textured. But the cultivar has an impressive history and may have great genetic value in whatever traits have contributed to its great longevity.”

All this made me curious, since I grew up near there. When I was back visiting my sisters last month I decided to go look for it. My friend thought I was crazy, poking around behind an industrial parking lot on a cold blustery day. All the while I was remembering that huge old white sapote that was cut down behind the Standard Brands parking lot in Emeryville, and wondering what I would find.

It’s still there—behind a nice new wrought iron fence!

You can find more info and pictures by Googling Endicott pear.

Epilogue: 1st CRFG Coffee Klatch

The first CRFG Coffee Klatch was a success, judging by feedback from attendees. Attending and mingling were Keitha Mara and her son Ethan, new member Ellen Chang and her mother Sherry, Louise Ostrom and her friend Jim, Shonduel, Dave McIntyre, and yours truly. We had quite a feast - more than we could finish. Keitha and Ethan brought bananas they'd grown themselves and dried. They were quite good!

We began the proceedings by watching a bit of the Orange County chapter's grafting DVD. It's a heckuva a bargain for $12! Then we moved on to the main event - watching "Eat at Bill's - Life at the Monterey Market". For those not in the know, Monterey Market is located across the street from Berkeley Horticultural Nursery and is renowned for the quality of its produce. The film was made by sometime CRFG member, Churchill Orchard co-owner and Peachpit Press author Lisa Brenneis. She and her husband Jim Churchill, with the help of Monterey Market owner Bill Fujimoto, brought the 'Pixie' cultivar of mandarin to the notice of foodies everywhere. She felt there was a story in Bill's enthusiasm for quality produce and the way he helps to support small farmers so she made a documentary film. The film has been shown in the Berkeley area and the DVD is available for purchase at Monterey Market and also online.

Shonduel said, "This film makes me so happy!" And it does do that. It's great to see farmers, chefs, shoppers, market owners and employees so happy and fulfilled in their work. These are people who love fruit and care about how it's grown and brought to the public.

After the film, we took a quick tour 'round my yard, looking wistfully at the vacant business lot next door and wishing we could plant it full of fruit. We talked a bit about guerilla gardening and guerilla grafting. I mentioned the International Guerilla Sunflower Day coming up on May 1. Ellen, a Master Composter, heard my pleas for more Eisenia foetida and opened her purse to produce a handful of red wriggler worms for my worm composter! A member said "It's like Aladdin's lamp - you just wished for worms and they appeared!"

I think we all had a good time. I encourage folks to host coffee klatches in their own neighborhoods so they can get to know their fellow CRFG members in a setting more conducive to mingling than the meetings might be.

Garden Tour Etiquette

I've now held a couple CRFG events at my house and I have some thoughts about tour etiquette that I thought I should disseminate before the upcoming tours at Gene Lester's, Idell's and Shyaam Shabaka's.

Remember that you are a guest at someone's home and/or garden. Please don't pick or harvest plants/seeds/fruit/budwood/scionwood without first receiving permission. Not everyone shares the same approach to their garden. While you may actively encourage people to take fruit, to pick flower and plants, etc. someone else might feel violated if their property is messed with without their permission. ALWAYS ASK FIRST. This applies whether you are touring a CRFG member's house or whether you're touring a large facility like Wolfskill. Bad behavior on tours reflects poorly on our chapter and can result in us being banned from ever being allowed to tour a site again.

Help Wanted - Inquire Within

If this chapter is to survive, we must fill these volunteer posts that are empty or soon to be empty:

Newsletter Editor - creates a newsletter which is distributed via email to those who have email and by USPS to those who do not have computer Internet access. Also keeps track of the membership database although that could (and probably should) be spun out to a separate volunteer post.

Treasurer - Takes care of chapter finances, notifies membership database person of any new membership dues that are sent to the chapter, etc.

Chair - I took on this post in September of 2007 and will step down in September of 2008. It involves answering the email that comes to the chapter email address, planning and scheduling chapter meetings and events, coordinating the efforts of chapter volunteers, etc. I'd be happy to give an orientation to my successor, whoever that may be. In fact, I'm fairly sure any of the volunteers who have formerly held any of the offices listed here would be happy to help new volunteers come up-to-speed on what the job duties are and what has worked best in the past.

First Chapter Coffee Klatch 3/30 1pm

Sunday, March 30, 2008 -1:00 PM

One of the most rewarding things about California Rare Fruit Growers
is the people. But not everyone is gregarious or brave enough to be
the one to break the ice. I know I don’t feel like I am. I’d like to
start chapter coffee klatches for months in which we don’t have a
meeting. We can get together for drinks, refreshments, even movies!
I’ll kick it off with a coffee klatch at my house in Berkeley on
March 30th to watch Eat at Bill’'s - a film by Lisa Brenneis (of
Churchill Orchard in Ojai) about Bill Fujimoto of Monterey Market.
It’s a great look not only at how one market can make a difference in
how customers perceive and buy produce, but an interesting
introduction to small growers who raise unusual produce, often
unusually.

Email me at golden_gate@crfg.org for the address.

Feeling Left Out?

Haven't gotten a newsletter in a while?

Either:

- Your email address has changed and you haven't apprised us of that.

- Your chapter membership has lapsed.

Pop an email to the chapter either giving us your updated contact information or double-checking your membership status. Or if you know it's been a while since you paid your membership dues, Send 10 clams to the address listed on our local chapter website.

Once we get your email address and have made sure that your membership is current, you will be invited to join our chapter's Yahoo Group. That is how our newsletter, announcements, and late-breaking news will be distributed. As we have no volunteer in the position of Newsletter Editor at the moment, it's doubly important you sign up. All news that is meant for current members only will be distributed via our chapter's Yahoo Group. I love the smell of the 21st Century in the morning...

Ridesharing to CRFG Events

Our chapter covers a broad area so sometimes the meetings are farther away than people feel like going. I'd like to see members using the Golden Gate CRFG Discussion List to offer and look for rides to meetings and other CRFG events. To that end, let me state that I'm happy to drive a couple people from near Ashby BART to the meeting at the El Sobrante Library on the 8th. The only caveat is that I have to be there to set up and break down so if you're with me, you're going to be there from 12:30ish to 4:15ish...

I'd especially like to see ride offers from members from SF, the North Bay and Contra Costa County who are planning on coming to the meeting. It's a great way to get to know people, to boost meeting attendance (which will really work in your favor this time since we're looking to get info from our members), to reduce your carbon footprint.

For those getting rides, it's always good etiquette to share gas and toll expenses. Especially with gas at $3.50 a gallon as of tonight!

Get Ready for the Next Meeting

The Light Brown Apple Moth quarantine has been affecting our traditional plant raffle for a while. So I've cooked up something that should stock this meeting's raffle with stuff you'll really want to buy a raffle ticket for a chance at. Be there or be square.

RSVP at: http://upcoming.yahoo.com/event/423359/

If you're willing to bring some refreshments to the meeting, please let me know.

The subject is "What grows where in the Bay Area?" It will be moderated by CRFG President Bill Grimes.

You guys are really going to be the stars of the next meeting. In order for all of us to get the most out of it, please reflect upon what your experience has been with growing certain crops in your area. Reflect upon how you'd describe your microclimate (for instance, I'm in a misty, windy part of Berkeley....other Berkeleyites live in warmer, more sheltered parts of our city), your soil, your average chill hours... Hopefully, neighbors can check with each other at the meeting to see what works for their area and learn about new things to try.

A site I have found INCREDIBLY helpful in helping me remember what went on and make sense of my garden is MyFolia. I was just on the verge of trying to create my own database program when I was invited to be a beta tester for this site. It does a lot of what I was looking for.

If you have time before the meeting, join MyFolia and start filling in what you've got planted. It will help you remember what all you've got and it will help other CRFG members know what you have. Then it's easier to ask each other for requests for budwood, scionwood, etc. And, if you're inclined to blog or journal, you can track your plants' progress. That way if your memory is bad, it's there in black & white. And it's available to be read by others who can learn from your triumphs and mistakes.

I think it has the potential to really be useful to our chapter if members join it. It's free. And I've NEVER gotten any spam from them.

You can view my garden here: http://myfolia.com/gardener/spidra

And you can join MyFolia as my guest here: http://www.myfolia.com/gardener/spidra/invite

I updated some of my plantings last night and I received permission from the site owners to start a CRFG area in the Groups area of the site. If you're a CRFG member who starts tracking your plants at Folia, please just post to the roll call thread so we can identify one another on the site and check out what we're growing.


Obviously, you don't have to use the site if you don't want to. But it would be great for us all if you did, I think. It would really help us help each other by increasing each chapter member's knowledge of other members' holdings, experiences, etc.


Megan Lynch
co-chair of Golden Gate chapter, CRFG

Svalbard Global Seed Vault Opens Next Week

The loss of biological diversity is currently one of the greatest challenges facing the environment and sustainable development. The diversity of food crops is under constant pressure. The consequence could be an irreversible loss of the opportunity to grow crops adapted to climate change, new plant diseases and the needs of an expanding population.

The Svalbard Global Seed Vault, which is currently being established in the permafrost in the mountains of Svalbard, is designed to store duplicates of seeds from seed collections from around the globe. Many of these collections from developing countries are in developing countries. If seeds are lost, e.g. as a result of natural disasters, war or simply a lack of resources, the seed collections may be reestablished using seeds from Svalbard.

Most of us will probably miss the opening next Tuesday because it is in Norway, but there will be "media files" available in the Press Room.

Grafting Weekend!

I made an aborted attempt to graft my scions today (aborted because I found my mom had thrown out my Parafilm while helpfully cleaning during my recovery from surgery last year). Then I checked my RSS reader and found Novella Carpenter grafted her haul yesterday and blogged about it. Novella freelances for several publications, including the SF Chron and Salon. It was through reading one of her SF Chron articles that I found out about her blog, City Farmer. Novella is doing the kind of urban farm thing I deeply wish I could do.

Anyway, I let her know about our Scion Exchange and she came. And now she's written it up.

Coming to a Trucker Hat Near You!

CRFG Patch
Originally uploaded by Spidra Webster

And this is what the CRFG patch looks like.

Badges? We Don't Need No Stinkin' Badges!

"Golden Gate Chapter of What??"
Originally uploaded by Spidra Webster

Well, you may not need them, but they sure help! Tired of filling out nametags at events? Get your CRFG member engraved badge and you can say goodbye to writer's cramp! Not only does it help folks at meetings know what to call you (besides "Hey, you!"), not only does it make our meetings seem friendlier and more approachable to potential members, you can also use the badge at other events.

For instance, I never received my name badge for my Master Gardener training class. I wear my CRFG badge instead. Not only do classmates say they love how easy my badge is to read, it invites questions like "The 'Golden Gate Chapter' of what??" See? Perfect opportunity to tell someone about CRFG. I mean, they asked!

The name badge kits are $5. You can either have them engraved at an engraver you like, or you can use the badge engraving service that CRFG currently has a limited time deal with. They'll charge $5.50 to engrave each badge, or will charge $5 per badge for orders of 10 or more from a single chapter (presumably the orders would need to be pooled and ordered at one time. I'll coordinate this if you like.) I ordered mine just a couple months ago and the current batch are white with green lettering. They have a metal enamel pin of the CRFG logo on them.

The marketplace also has CRFG 4 color decals ($1 per each or $10 per dozen), 3" cloth patches ($3), and pins ($4). You can order by calling Jack Burgard at 951 threefivethree seventeensixty-seven (4pm - 7pm Pacific time) or emailing market (at) crfg.org You can send a check made out to CRFG, Inc. to CRFG Marketplace, 2198 John St., Riverside, CA 92503-6822 I believe you can also pay via PayPal if you ask Jack where to go to.

Badges are for CRFG members only (not just a chapter subscriber, but a member of the chapter AND national CRFG). There's no such limitations with patches and decals, though, so let your fruit flag fly!

Bees! Bees! Bees! Wild Bees!

A "Berry" Good Bee for Pollinating
Blackberries and Raspberries
By Marcia Wood

Bringing grains of pollen to waiting blackberry and red raspberry blossoms may be the special talent of a small, emerald-green bee called Osmia aglaia. That's according to Agricultural Research Service (ARS) entomologist James H. Cane, who...has studied the pollination prowess of this 3/8-inch-long bee perhaps more extensively than any other scientist.

Both kinds of berries are mostly self-pollinating, meaning that they can form fruit without the need for insects to bring pollen to them. But better berries result if honey bees or O. aglaia visit red raspberry flowers, Cane found. The plump, well-formed fruits were 30 percent bigger than those on red raspberry plants not visited by either bee species.

Read more about this research in the February 2008 issue of Agricultural Research magazine.

Scion Exchange Pictures Up!

My Scions
Originally uploaded by joeysplanting

I was able to snap off a few, but joeysplanting on Flickr got some great shots of the Exchange. They're on CRFG's Flickr Pool.

Volunteers! Thank You For A Successful Scion Exchange!

At first I didn't write an email because I was completely exhausted
from the Scion Exchange. Then, when I had a bit more energy, I felt
as if I had to write professional writer level prose and put it off
'til I could summon that. But hang it all, people need to be
congratulated! We don't yet have tabulated figures for the number of
new members nor the money raised for the chapter. I don't know about
you, but it felt like a success to me. I was heartened to see a bit
of diversity in who was coming, the sign in sheet showed that some of
our PR efforts have worked, and we had a lot of people in that room!
Despite the quarantine's effect on what we can offer in our raffle,
we had fairly good participation in it.

NONE of this would be possible without all the many volunteers who
gave of their time and energy to make the Scion Exchange happen. I
want to avoid the trap of naming names and thus possibly leaving
someone out. I want to leave no volunteer out. You know who you
are. Know that I am very grateful for all of your help. I always
knew that the Scion Exchange was a lot of work but being on the
inside this year showed me that it's a minor miracle every year that
we can pull it off with the few resources we have.

The course of this event demonstrated something I'll be repeating
again and again until everyone knows it by heart: while we depend on
the volunteers who take on offices or big chunks of work, we are also
supported by and indebted to those who make whatever small contribution
they can. Even twenty minutes of help once a year can make a
difference. Do whatever you can and you will see this chapter
establish strong roots and thrive....and bear a harvest of
information and experiences that benefit YOU.

Mangosteens at Monterey Market

I went to the screening of Eat at Bill's last night, and Bill Fujimoto was there to answer questions. Someone asked, "What's new?" and he said they expect to have fresh mangosteens at the Monterey Market by the end of the week! (They are irradiated; he said that's the only way to get at insects under the calyx.)

New Tropical Fruits Coming to a Market Near You

New varieties of tropical fruit may soon make landfall on the U.S. mainland, thanks to work by scientists with the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico. They are using crop management practices to increase yield and obtain high-quality tropical fruit that can be imported safely into the continental United States.

For instance, U.S. imports of mamey sapote--a cantaloupe-sized fruit prized by the Hispanic community in the United States--have been restricted by concerns that it may serve as a host for the West Indian fruit fly. But studies conducted by TARS entomologist David Jenkins indicate that these insects are unlikely to infest mamey sapote crops produced in Puerto Rico.

The station also maintains a germplasm collection of other exotic tropical and subtropical plants, including sapodilla, Spanish lime, and species of Annona and Garcinia.

Large-scale cash crop research at TARS focuses on bananas (92 accessions) and plantains (29 accessions) (in the Musa genus), cacao, papaya, beans and sorghum. Horticulturist Brian Irish and research leader Ricardo Goenaga are conducting research evaluating Musa germplasm.

Click here for more, and be sure to click through to the full magazine article, which has much more info and lots of great photos.

Monterey Market film to be shown at Kensington library Jan. 14

Kensington Library
Monday, January 14th at 7 p.m.
Join us for a screening of Eat at Bill's: Life in the Monterey Market, a film by Lisa Brenneis, a California citrus grower. This is a fascinating look behind the scenes at a very influential local grocery store, and the people who work and shop there. After the film Bill Fujimoto, owner of the Monterey Market, will be available to answer questions.

Don't Forget to RSVP!

For a while now, I have been posting chapter event notices at Upcoming.org I hope this will help us reach potential new members. However, YOU can help. By RSVPing at our event listings on Upcoming (even if it seems pointless because everyone knows you always attend meetings), you help our event sort higher on Upcoming's home page. Which means more people see it. Which means more people might attend. So please PLEASE RSVP at our Scion Exchange listing on Upcoming.org

If you already have a Yahoo ID (from Yahoo Mail or Yahoo Groups, etc.), you can just sign in with that. If not, you'll have to create an account. If you're worried about privacy, I have NEVER gotten any spam due to my registration and activity on Upcoming.org

If you go to Upcoming.org, add "spidra" as a contact and you will be able to see all CRFG events I post there by just selecting "My Friends' Events" in the top menu.

Merritt Grafting Class

Grafting for the home fruit orchard: A one day class covering grafting, budding, planting, pruning and care of the home fruit orchard. This class is designed for the gardener with limited space who wants to maximize fruit production and variety. The class is 9-4pm Sat Feb 9th, Room H108 Merritt College, The course number is 848pb, the class code is M1433. The fee is $78, the materials fee is $5 which includes 2 dwarf apple rootstocks, one citrus rootstock and all the scion material. You can enroll by phone at 510 436-2413 or enroll at the beginning of the class (please pay by check or cash). The instructor is Susan Ashley, who teaches propagation and grafting at Merritt College.She can be reached at Susanwashley@gmail.com. Thank You