He is a familiar voice to thousands of gardening fans and hobbyists alike, and a familiar name. “Bob Tanem in the Garden,” the most popular Sunday program on KSFO radio in San Francisco, and the recipient of the prestigious Garden Writers Association of America’s award of excellence nationwide for “on air talent” has been entertaining and instructing faithful listeners for 11 years in a row from 7 to 10 a.m. PST.

The man behind the voice will be in Manteca to talk about “Why we all love to garden” when the Manteca Garden Club hosts the Valley Lode District meeting on Feb. 14, 2012. The luncheon meeting will be held at the Chez Shari restaurant located on the second floor of the Manteca Golf Course clubhouse on North Union Road. The event theme, “All things grow with love,” will dovetail with the topic that Tanem will talk about.

A retired retail nurseryman who owned and operated Tanem’s Garden Centers in Balvedere and San Rafael/Santa Venetia, the 80-year-old radio host is the author of five books on gardening: “Annuals for Northern California,” “Perennials for Northern California,” “Trees and Shrubs for Northern California,” and, “Gardening Month by Month in Northern California” which were all published by Lone Pine Publishing in Edmonton, Alberta, with Don Williamson as co-author; and, “Deer Resistant Planting,” his first book that he self-published in 1993 which is still a hot seller.

Tanem, who attended the University of California at Berkeley, is also a member of the Garden Writers of America and the California Association of Nurseries and Garden Centers, Redwood Empire Chapter.

During his retirement, Tanem has also become a volunteer for a program aimed at not only providing food and housing for the homeless but also training them to help them find employment. The program is called New Beginnings in Novato, and includes an organic vegetable garden supervised by Tanem. The “homeless feeding the homeless” gardening program, which donates 400 pounds of vegetables each year to the food bank, was awarded the Mantis award for public gardens in 2001. Most recently, Tanem also was the recipient of Marin Beyond Pesticides, the Marin Board of Supervisors’ Pest Management Award for the New Beginnings Organic Garden.

More information about the radio garden program host can be obtained by visiting his web site at www.bobtanem.com which includes the above information. Log on to www.ksfo560.com Sunday mornings from 7 to 10 a.m. for his live show on the web.

While Manteca Garden Club President Rita Canales is busy getting the committees ready for the district-wide garden get-together on Valentine’s Day, preparations for the club’s holiday luncheon set for Monday, Dec. 19, are also under way. The venue is different from what is in the club yearbook. Instead of having the Christmas luncheon in Ripon, the group will meet at Strings, 1125 South Main Street, in the Walmart shopping center. Sign-ups will be taken at the club’s next meeting. Those who can’t make it to the meeting but would like to attend the luncheon are asked to send their checks of $12 to: Manteca Garden Club, P.O. Box 23, Manteca, CA 95336. Deadline for checks to be received is Dec. 9. Specify choice of menu.

The menu selections are as follows (all will be served with soup or salad with bread, and your choice of coffee, tea, iced tea, or soft drink – tax and tip included):

•Meat ravioli with meat sauce ($12), tortellini alla panna – veal tortellini with cream, garlic, mushrooms, Italian cheeses, smoked ham, and marsala wine ($12), artichoke ravioli covered with marinara and Alfredo sauce ($12), unlimited soup and salad ($12), chicken pesto sandwich – marinated chicken breast topped with sliced tomato and mozzarella cheese served on a toasted French roll (12), and chicken picatta – lightly seasoned chicken breast covered with a sauce of white wine, lemon capers, and served with a side of pasta ($14.).

Organized in 1953 and incorporated in 1962, the Manteca Garden Club is a member of National Garden Clubs, Inc., the Pacific Region of National Garden Clubs, the California Garden Clubs, Inc., and the Valley Lode District which includes the counties of Alpine, Amador, Calaveras, Mono, San Joaquin, Stanislaus, and Tuolumne.

For information about joining the Manteca Garden Club or other questions, log on to http://www.mantecagardenclub.org or call 823-8270.