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Fri, Oct 06, 2023

See (and smell) the best roses from four states

ARS conference in Sacramento features huge rose show; plus hear Debbie talk roses and horses

Thu, Oct 05, 2023

Fall plant sales galore this weekend

From Woodland to Placerville, plenty of possibilities -- and a propagation workshop, too

Wed, Oct 04, 2023

Giant pumpkins coming to Elk Grove

Annual festival celebrates humongous gourds and family fun

Tue, Oct 03, 2023

Loomis celebrates 36th annual Eggplant Festival

Free community party features food, music, shopping and family fun

Mon, Oct 02, 2023

Shepard Center hosts annual Fall Sale

More than 30 clubs and vendors will offer wide range of plants, crafts, garden stuff and more.

Sun, Oct 01, 2023

Apple-packed muffins for fall on the go

Recipe: Fresh apple muffins with vanilla yogurt.

Sat, Sep 30, 2023

Dig In: Garden checklist for week of Oct. 1

Light rain, cool temperatures and warm soil create great conditions for planting fall garden.

Fri, Sep 29, 2023

How to pick a perfect pumpkin

Patches are now open at local nurseries with thousands of possibilities; what to look for when pumpkin shopping.

Thu, Sep 28, 2023

Cactus, succulents focus of free class Sunday

Yolo master gardeners also to present garden talk, plant sale soon

Wed, Sep 27, 2023

Green Acres hosts free Fall Festival at all seven locations

Pumpkin contests, workshops and games are part of garden fun for the whole family

Tue, Sep 26, 2023

UC Davis Arboretum hosts big plant sale

Get water-wise favorites and California natives in time for fall planting.

Mon, Sep 25, 2023

Sogetsu Ikebana pushes boundaries of flower arranging

Sacramento show highlights floral freedom of expression

Sun, Sep 24, 2023

Bake with apples, blackberries to bridge the seasonal shift

Spiced coffee cake an ideal treat for early-fall breakfast

Sat, Sep 23, 2023

Dig In: Garden checklist for week of Sept. 24

Autumn starts on cool side – with a chance of rain coming soon

Fri, Sep 22, 2023

Oriental fruit flies found near Rancho Cordova

Eradication efforts underway to stop the spread of this highly destructive pest

Thu, Sep 21, 2023

On latest Farmer Fred podcast, hear master gardeners' tips for fall

Advice for the vegetable garden, orchard, roses -- and late-summer produce

Wed, Sep 20, 2023

Club hosts auction of collectible bonsai

American Bonsai Association, Sacramento, welcomes public to bid at Shepard Center

Tue, Sep 19, 2023

Sacramento's Farm-to-Fork Festival turns 10

Huge street party set for Friday and Saturday on Capitol Mall

Mon, Sep 18, 2023

Water-wise demonstration garden coming to Loomis

Placer County master gardeners to break ground on 11,000-square-foot project

Sun, Sep 17, 2023

Try this tri-tip stew packed with fresh vegetables

Leftover beef pairs with fresh tomatoes, carrots, potatoes and green beans

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Taste Winter! E-cookbook

Lemon coconut pancakes

Find our winter recipes here!

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Garden Checklist for week of Jan. 5

Take advantage of this break between storm systems to give your garden some much-needed TLC.

* Prune, prune, prune. Now is the time to cut back most deciduous trees and shrubs. The exceptions are spring-flowering shrubs such as lilacs.

* Now is the time to prune fruit trees. (The exceptions are apricot and cherry trees, which are susceptible to a fungus that causes dieback. Save them until summer.) Clean up leaves and debris around the trees to prevent the spread of disease.

* Prune roses, even if they’re still trying to bloom. Strip off any remaining leaves, so the bush will be able to put out new growth in early spring.

* Clean up leaves and debris around your newly pruned roses and shrubs. Put down fresh mulch or bark to keep roots cozy.

* Apply horticultural oil to fruit trees soon after a rain to control scale, mites and aphids. Oils need 24 hours of dry weather after application to be effective.

* This is also the time to spray a copper-based fungicide to peach and nectarine trees to fight leaf curl. (The safest effective fungicides available for backyard trees are copper soap -- aka copper octanoate -- or copper ammonium, a fixed copper fungicide. Apply either of these copper products with 1% horticultural oil to increase effectiveness.)

* When forced bulbs sprout, move them to a cool, bright window. Give them a quarter turn each day so the stems will grow straight.

* Browse through seed catalogs and start making plans for spring and summer.

* Divide daylilies, Shasta daisies and other perennials.

* Cut back and divide chrysanthemums.

* Plant bare-root roses, trees and shrubs.

* Transplant pansies, violas, calendulas, English daisies, snapdragons and fairy primroses.

* In the vegetable garden, plant fava beans, head lettuce, mustard, onion sets, radicchio and radishes.

* Plant bare-root asparagus and root divisions of rhubarb.

* In the bulb department, plant callas, anemones, ranuculous and gladiolus for bloom from late spring into summer.

* Plant blooming azaleas, camellias and rhododendrons. If you’re shopping for these beautiful landscape plants, you can now find them in full flower at local nurseries.

Taste Spring! E-cookbook

Strawberries

Find our spring recipes here!

Taste Summer! E-cookbook

square-tomatoes-plate.jpg

Find our summer recipes here!

Taste Fall! E-cookbook

Muffins and pumpkin

Find our fall recipes here!