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May 2025Archived

 

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UC Master Gardener Program of Contra Costa County: Event

Ask A master Gardener - Martinez Beaver Festival - AAMG2026

Event Date
Jun 13, 2026

Come and find our Ask A Master Gardener (AAMG) table during the Martinez Beaver Festival in Martinez to answer all your gardening questions and so much more!
UC Master Gardener Program of Contra Costa County
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UC Master Gardener Program of Contra Costa County: Event

Ask A Master gardener - Art and Wind Festival - AAMG2026

Event Date
May 25, 2026

Come and find our Ask A Master Gardener (AAMG) table at the Art and Wind Festival in San Ramon to get answers to all your gardening questions and so much more!
UC Master Gardener Program of Contra Costa County
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UC Master Gardener Program of Contra Costa County: Event

Ask A Master Gardener - Art and Wind Festival - AAMG2026

Event Date
May 24, 2026

Come and find our Ask A Master Gardener (AAMG) table at the Art and Wind Festival in San Ramon to get answers to all your gardening questions and so much more!
UC Master Gardener Program of Contra Costa County
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UC Master Gardener Program of Contra Costa County: Event

Ask A Master Gardener - West County GTPS - AAMG2026

Event Date
May 2, 2026

Come and find our Ask A Master Gardener (AAMG) table to get answers to all your questions and so much more!NEW LOCATION! Richmond Art Center during GTPS West County.
UC Master Gardener Program of Contra Costa County
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UC Master Gardeners of Placer County: Event

39th Annual Mother’s Day Tour

Event Date
May 10, 2026

Join us for the 39th Annual Mother’s Day Garden Tour! Explore a collection of unique and imaginative private gardens in Roseville! Selected by UC Master Gardeners, each garden offers inspiring ideas you’ll love to bring into your own outdoor spaces.Enjoy six gardens in a range of sizes overflowing with…
UC Master Gardeners of Placer County
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UC Master Gardeners of Placer County: Event

Garden Faire Fall Harvest & Gardening Extravaganza

Event Date
Sep 12, 2026

Due to a full Maidu Community Center calendar, we are moving our Garden Faire to a new fall date. This is an opportunity to discover the unique and productive joy of fall gardening. Learn to master soil, overwinter your treasures, and prepare for spring.
UC Master Gardeners of Placer County
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three groups of dried adobo peppers look alike
UC Master Food Preserver: Article

An Adobo Pepper Dehydration Experiment (April 2026)

April 11, 2026
Monica Gross, Los Angeles Co., Online Delivery Program VolunteerDehydration is one of the earliest preservation methods developed by humankind. There is evidence from Middle Eastern and Asian cultures that dehydration was used as a method of preservation as far back as 12,000 BCE. The hot sun was harnessed…
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UC Master Gardener Program of Sonoma County: Article

Advice to Grow By

April 11, 2026
The UC Master Gardeners of Sonoma County author articles written for the home gardener that are featured in the Press Democrat, our local Pulitzer Prize winning newspaper. Topics include plant selection, sustainable garden practices, pest management and more.
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California Cherry Season is Coming—Try this Luscious Chocolate-Cherry Jam! (April 2026)

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a close up of washed fresh red cherries
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a close up of washed fresh red cherries
Image by Samuele Schirò from Pixabay

Chocolate paired with cherries is a match made in heaven.  

With the California cherry season approaching, consider making this delicious and decadent jam. Use it as an ice-cream topping, stir it into yogurt, use it to frost brownies, or top a cheesecake! The possibilities are endless.  

For best results, be sure to use a high-quality unsweetened cocoa powder that is pure cocoa. 

Yield: approximately 6 ½-pint jars 
Preparation time: 20 minutes plus 10+ minutes of processing (depending on elevation).  

Ingredients 

6 cups coarsely chopped fresh or frozen pitted dark, sweet cherries,  

6 Tbsp. traditional (not low-sugar) pectin 

¼ cup bottled lemon juice 

6 cups sugar 

2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder 

Instructions 

  1. Ready your boiling water or atmospheric steam canner. Heat jars in boiling-water canner or over simmering water in a steam canner until ready to use. Wash lids in warm soapy water, rinse, and set aside with bands. 

  1. Whisk the sugar and cocoa together in a bowl until well mixed. 

  1. Combine the cherries, pectin and lemon juice in a 4-quart stainless steel or enameled pan. Over high heat, bring the mixture to a full rolling boil that cannot be stirred down, stirring constantly. 

  1. Add the sugar/cocoa mixture all at once to the boiling cherry mixture. Return the mixture to a full rolling boil. Boil hard for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Skim foam, if necessary. 

  1. Ladle hot jam into a hot jar, leaving ¼-inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Clean the jar rim and center a lid on the jar. Screw on a band and adjust to fingertip tight. Place jar in the boiling-water or atmospheric steam canner. Repeat until all jars are filled. 

  1. Process jars for 10 minutes, adjusting for altitude (see below). Turn off heat. If using a boiling-water canner, remove the lid, and let jars stand for 5 minutes. If using an atmospheric steam canner, let canner rest for 3 minutes before removing the lid. In both cases, remove jars after the specified waiting period and cool on the counter for 12-24 hours. After this period, check lids for seal; they should not flex when the center is pressed. 

Adapted from a recipe in The All-New Ball Book of Canning and Preserving, (Oxmoor House, 2016). 

Altitude adjustments: 

Altitude in Feet Increase Processing Time by 
1,001 to 3,000 5 minutes 
3,001 to 6,000 10 minutes 
6,001 to 8,000 15 minutes 
8,001 to 10,000 20 minutes 

UC Master Food Preserver