Alamo • Danville • Blackhawk • Diablo • San Ramon
VALLEY
THE
SENTINEL
See page 4 for Bev Lane’s story about mysterious creatures in the parks
always for the community
valleysentinel.com
December 2010
VOL 16, NO 1
SEVENTY-FIVE CENTS
SPOTLIGHT
Cost of College Goes Up for Some By Dana Guzzetti
University of California college fees have officially tripled in the past decade, and the fees are now called tuition. UC regents voted 15-5 to raise the cost of college for all UC students beginning in the 2011-12 academic year. Undergraduate tuition and fees will go from $11,124 to a statewide average of $12,150. This eight percent increase follows last year’s 32 percent increase. Many in-state undergraduates with family incomes of less than $70,000 had been eligible for attend under the Blue and Gold Opportunity Plan, which covers all costs. That income limit was increased, so families with $80,000 or less may be able to attend for free. (There are some limits on assets.) Associate Vice President Marsha
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See TUITION page 5
Farms in Danville? By Dana Guzzetti
Families move to Danville because of its good schools and old-time agrarian image. For Judy Sandkuhle, Danville is more than a picturesque image of the past. “I am a real, agricultural nursery. I am the old Danville,” she asserts. Sandkuhle’s grandfather started Sunset Nursery in Oakland in 1908 and moved it to Alamo in 1923, across the creek from the old Alamo Cemetery, where it remained until 1984, when it was relocated to Danville. When they see the roadside nursery on San Ramon Valley Blvd., most passersby may not realize that 95 percent of the plants sold to the public on weekends are grown on site.
Sandkuhle is a geranium and pelargonium specialist. She started working in the nursery at age eight and has been using those skills to nurture perfect poinsettias for the 2010 holiday season. “You can’t plant them in the ground here after Christmas because they can’t survive the frost,” Sandkuhle says, but she will teach anyone how to keep them in a pot and make them change color again next year (see below). It is quite a process. Sandkuhle says she also has a nice selection of gorgeous amaryllis, vivid Christmas cactus, colorful cyclamen and sumptuous succulent; all of which would also make a
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wonderful holiday or hostess gift. “We can create custom made wreaths, sprays, winter color bowls and make salad bowls. A salad bowl is laden with lettuces and greens such as spinach or Swiss chard and pansies to keep near a back door for easy picking for fresh food preparation at home. Gardeners and gift buyers enjoy a trip to the farm to find information Judy has spent a lifetime accumulating. The difference between her advice and the internet or a big box store nurseryperson is her intimate, practical knowledge of local species and growing conditions. Visitors are encouraged to ask about classes.
“We have Christmas trees!” Judy remarks enthusiastically. “Our trees are kept in water and we have them delivered weekly
Holiday Decorating, Dining & Entertainment
See FARMS page 3