Under the Solano Sun

Its that time of the year again! The UC Master Gardeners of Solano County's annual Wreath Workshop. Again the place will be at St. Mary's Catholic Church parish hall, 350 Stinson Ave., Vacaville on December 7th from 1-4 pm. For Master Gardeners, this is a very busy fun event for us.

Gesundheit The idea of plants sneezing is mind-boggling. Plants do sneeze in a sense. When two water drops unite, surface tension is released and converted into kinetic energy that can hurl the fluid away. This effect happens only on extremely water repellent or superhydrophobic plant leaves.

Now that the mornings have become chilly, it's that time of year to start snuggling up with some good gardening books.

Spiders. Whether dangling or leaping, scurrying or creeping, spiders usually make me flinch indoors and out. I don't know why, since I was raised in the country where spider webs stretched across rows of orange trees and rose arbors.

I am so excited to have a new opportunity to work in the education department at Solano RCD (Resource Conservation District). The department has a program to introduce middle school students to nature and help them learn the fundamentals of the scientific study process.