Nevada Division of State Parks is putting on what it calls relaxation and nature canoe trips that will start just below the Lahontan Dam and runs along the Carson River to the Irrigation Diversion Dam.

These events are good for beginners who can learn the basics of canoeing. Canoes, paddles, and life jackets will be provided, but participants will need to bring sun block and drinking water.

Space is limited; call 775.867.3500 for reservations.

Trips are June 14, June 26, June 27 ad June 28 from 9am-2pm.

Lahontan Dam River Camp is at 16799 Lahontan Dam Road, Fallon.

The event is free and entrance fee is waived for participants.

Janet Steinmann and Mimi Komito, longtime herb gardeners in Lake Tahoe, are putting on a class called Tasty Mountain-Friendly Herbs.

The master gardeners will teach people all about herb gardening in Tahoe. They will share tips on how, when and where to grow a delicious herb garden in Tahoe’s sometimes challenging climate.

Food and drink will be shared with participants to feature the many uses of herbs.

The free workshop is July 9 from 5:30-6:30pm at North Lake Tahoe Demonstration Garden, Sierra Nevada College, 999 Tahoe Blvd., Incline Village.

By Martin Griffith, AP

RENO — Scientists are hailing the return of a threatened fish to its home spawning grounds in Nevada for the first time in 76 years, calling it a milestone in efforts to re-establish a self-sustaining population of the species at a desert lake near Reno.

About 90 Lahontan cutthroat trout weighing up to 25 pounds spawned this spring along the extreme lower two-mile section of the Truckee River, which flows over 100 miles from Lake Tahoe to Pyramid Lake, U.S. Fish and Wildlife officials announced last week.

Pyramid’s cutthroats last spawned in the river in 1938 and died out by the 1940s because of overfishing, degraded habitat and the introduction of non-native fish. They also vanished from Tahoe around the same time for similar reasons.

Lisa Heki, fisheries complex manager for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, said the recent spawning activity was a surprise because of low water levels caused by a severe drought.

It offers hope that the species reintroduced into Pyramid in 2006 will be able to reproduce on its own in the future without the help of hatcheries, she said. Heki said she expects the number of cutthroats that spawn in the Truckee to keep increasing.

“It confirms this strain retains its capacity to reproduce naturally and it’s ready to take advantage of the stream to spawn,” she told the Associated Press. “I think we’re on the steps of a new era for this species. It’s pretty exciting.”

Terence James, vice chairman of the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe, agreed. His tribe’s hatchery has raised cutthroat that originated from outside the Truckee basin since 1974.

“It’s a very exciting success story for the tribe,” he told the Reno Gazette-Journal, which broke the story about the spawning activity on the lower Truckee. “We haven’t seen this happen for a very long time.”

Officials counted 182 spawning areas along the lower Truckee where cutthroat males and females paired up to lay and fertilize eggs.

Heki said that while it’s uncertain whether any of the areas produced fry that survived, it’s likely that cutthroats would have more spawning success in a wet year.

The goal is to allow the species to get past a couple of dams on the lower Truckee and spawn around Reno and other upstream areas as it once did, she said.

Nevada’s state fish, the cutthroat is prized by anglers because of its taste and size. A record 41-pound cutthroat was caught at Pyramid in 1925, and specimens weighing up to 25 pounds have been reeled in over the last year.

A recovery team also is considering a long-term effort to restore the cutthroat at Lake Tahoe, Heki said, but officials first want to re-establish a self-sustaining population of the species at Fallen Leaf Lake.

“I think this strain would perform quite well at Lake Tahoe,” Heki said. “Long-term, with community involvement and support, I think it’s definitely feasible to have them there.”

A higher number of moths are being reported in Northern Nevada compared to past years.

The Nevada Department of Agriculture entomology laboratory is receiving a lot of inquiries about them. The moths are the adults of the army cutworm (Euxoa auxiliaris), an insect native to Nevada.

The army cutworm overwinters as partially grown larvae – caterpillars – in the soil. They feed on a variety of plants for a couple of months when the weather warms up in the spring.

The moths pupate then emerge as adult moths. The adult moths, called millers, feed on nectar and some pollen and therefore are not generally a threat to gardens or crops.

While the moths may be a nuisance, officials do not recommend spraying with them pesticides.

For more info, call 775.353.3767.

By Beth Harris, AP

NEW YORK — California Chrome went home to the West Coast on Sunday with a bandaged right front foot — and no Triple Crown — after bumping another horse leaving the Belmont Stakes starting gate.

Steve Coburn, who co-owns California Chome, was still smarting, too.

He was irked Belmont winner Tonalist didn’t run in either of the first two legs of the Triple Crown. After the race, he complained others took “the coward’s way out” by skipping the Derby and/or the Preakness.

A day later, Coburn was unrepentant.

“It’s not fair to these horses that are running to entertain these people in all three legs of the Triple Crown,” he said. “It’s not fair to them to have somebody just show up at the last minute and run. I may have gone off half-cocked yesterday, but that’s the way I feel.”

Under Coburn’s premise, there would have been just three horses in the $1.5 million Belmont, making it unlikely the third-largest crowd of 102,199 would have shown up or that a record $19,105,877 would have been wagered on-track.

California Chrome, General a Rod and Ride On Curlin were the only horses to run in the Derby, Preakness and Belmont. General a Rod finished seventh and Ride On Curlin did not finish.

Art Sherman, the 77-year-old trainer of California Chrome, distanced himself from Coburn’s comments.

“Horses aren’t cowards and the people aren’t cowards,” he said. “He was at the heat of the moment. Don’t forget he’s a fairly new owner. Sometimes your emotions get in front of you. He hasn’t been in the game long and hasn’t had any bad luck.”

Coburn and Perry Martin named their racing operation Dumb Ass Partners, with California Chrome the lone horse in their stable. The chestnut colt has earned $3,317,800 this year and brought a six-race winning streak into the Belmont.

California Chrome had smooth trips in winning the Kentucky Derby and Preakness to set up a shot at racing’s first Triple Crown in 36 years. But he had a rough trip in the 1 1/2-mile Belmont on Saturday, getting a chunk of flesh torn from his foot after bumping with Matterhorn coming out of the starting gate. California Chrome finished in a dead heat for fourth with Wicked Strong.

“It was kind of scary. You come back and see a horse bleeding from the foot,” Sherman said. “He’s never had anything wrong with him. We’ve been awful fortunate.”

Sherman said California Chrome has a superficial wound that should heal in two to three weeks. The colt will then rest for six to seven weeks after a tough Triple Crown campaign that involved running in three races at different tracks and distances over five weeks.

His camp plans to point him toward the Breeders’ Cup this fall at Santa Anita.

Sherman thought Coburn would apologize for his comments. Instead, the outspoken co-owner went even further Sunday.

“It wouldn’t be fair if I played basketball with a child in a wheelchair because I got an unfair advantage,” Coburn said. “If your horse is good enough to run in the Belmont, where was he in the Kentucky Derby and Preakness? It says Triple Crown, not one out of two, one out of three or two out of three.”

Sherman said, “I can’t make excuses. That’s not really what you should do in these type of races.”

Frenchman Christophe Clement, who won his first Triple Crown race with Totalist, declined to comment on Coburn’s remarks.

Coburn had predicted California Chrome would win the Triple Crown.

“If they want to call me a sore loser, I don’t care,” he said.

Horses are made eligible for the Triple Crown races in January. Owners and trainers of horses not nominated can pay a late fee of $6,000 in March to get in. The 20-horse field for the Kentucky Derby is decided by a points system, with horses earning points for running in prep races. The Preakness and Belmont have maximum fields of 14, but no points system is used.

It’s common for horses to drop in and out of the Triple Crown series. In 1978, when Affirmed won the Triple Crown, the Belmont had a five-horse field. Two of the colt’s rivals did not run in the first two legs and one only ran in the Derby.

In 1977, Seattle Slew won the Triple Crown. The Belmont had eight horses, and five did not run in the first two legs. One ran only in the Preakness, and one other besides Slew raced in all three legs.

On Saturday, second-place finisher Commissioner was new to the Triple Crown series. Winner Tonalist wasn’t ready for the Derby, so trainer Clement prepared him for the Belmont.

“California Chrome was running with tough, fresh horses that were waiting in the wings, and that’s what happens,” Sherman said. “We all know when you’re on this trail you got to have an iron horse.”

The veteran trainer hopes California Chrome’s owners will keep him running next year as a 4-year-old. He credited the colt for having a lot of talent and taking his handlers on an exciting ride.

“This is one of them races that we couldn’t win,” Sherman said, “but he didn’t disgrace us any.”

By Melinda Myers

Don’t let a lack of time or space get in the way of gardening your way to a healthy lifestyle. Plant a container of nutritious vegetables and herbs. Include a few planters on the front porch, back patio or right outside the kitchen door.

All that’s needed is some potting mix, fertilizer, plants and a container with drainage holes. A 15- to 24-inch diameter pot or 24- to 36-inch long window box is a good starting size.

Bigger containers hold more plants and moisture longer, so it can be watered less frequently.

Check containers daily and water thoroughly as needed. Self-watering pots need less frequent watering, allowing busy gardeners and travelers the opportunity to grow plants in pots with minimal care.

Fill the container with a well-drained potting mix. Read the label on the container mix bag. Add a slow release organic nitrogen fertilizer, like Milorganite at planting for better results with less effort. It provides small amounts of nutrients throughout most of the season and eliminates the need to mix and water in fertilizer throughout the growing season.

Sprinkle a bit more on the soil surface midseason or when changing out your plantings.

Mix colorful flowers with nutritious vegetables for attractive, healthy results. Bright Lights Swiss Chard, pansies (their flowers are edible), colorful leaf lettuce, spinach, radishes, and trailing ivy make a great cool season combination. Fresh-from-the-container-garden vegetables make the best tasting salads and the greens provide Vitamins A and C as well as calcium.

Use the pansy flowers to dress up a salad or frozen in ice cubes for an added gourmet touch to beverages.

For summer, use a tomato, pepper, eggplant or peas, beans, and cucumbers trained on a trellis. All are packed full of nutrients and make a great vertical accent. Surround the towering vegetables with purple basil, tri-color sage, carrots, beets and a colorful trailing annual like verbena, lantana, or bidens.

Don’t forget to squeeze in a few onions or garlic. The fragrant foliage can be decorative and these vegetables help lower blood sugar and cholesterol, while aiding in digestion.

So be creative and add a few small-scale, attractive vegetables high in nutritional value to a variety of containers this season.

Melinda Myers has more than 30 years of horticulture experience and has written more than 20 gardening books.

Even though Corral Trail has been professionally designed, it’s not all about gnarly mountain bikers.

This video by South Lake Tahoe’s First Track Productions shows how even 4-year-olds ride it. People can roll over all the features or do tricks off them.

TAMBA — Tahoe Area Mountain Biking Association — and the U.S. Forest Service partnered to improve this South Shore trail for all levels of riders. It took hundreds of hours of volunteer time.

Trails and Vistas’ Art Hikes blend art experiences with being immersed in nature.

This year’s guided art hikes will take place along an aspen lined trail at Spooner Lake in Lake Tahoe Nevada State Park on Sept. 6-7.

“Meadows to Mountains — A cultural journey” will include Scarlet Rivera, one of the world’s most prominent and versatile violinists, and award-winning flutist Ann Licater. Santa Cruz-based SambaDá, a funk band dubbed the “the West Coast’s hottest Brazilian band” will also perform during the Sept. 7 art hikes.

In addition to the art hikes, there will be an evening world music concert featuring prominent and celebrated musicians from near and far on Sept. 6. The concert includes multiple acts and serves as a fundraiser for Trails and Vistas’ Art in Nature fieldtrips for more than 300 third-grade students.

Tickets for the art hikes are $30 for adults and $10 for children (5 to 12 years old) when purchased by July 15. Beginning July 15, art hike admission goes up to $40 per adult and $15 per child. For tickets, go online.

Tahoe Rim Trail Association needs volunteers to help with trail maintenance.

According the the TRTA, “Trees are throwing themselves across the Tahoe Rim Trail, whitethorn branches are attacking unsuspecting ankles, mud puddles and giant toe stubbing rocks are conspiring to move into prime locations in the middle of the trail, and water particles are in cahoots to steal soil from the trail and dump it in the lake.”

Crews will be out on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays throughout the summer to take back the trail.

To register, go online.

By Wayne Parry, AP

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — New Jersey is bolstering its legal arguments as it tries to get the U.S. Supreme Court to consider its effort to overturn a ban on legalized sports betting in all but four states.

In a filing submitted Tuesday, the state says the federal law needs to be reviewed immediately.

Theodore Olson, who won the Bush v. Gore election case in 2000, says the ban impermissibly restricts states’ rights. He also says the high court needs to consider the way the law treats states differently.

The law restricts sports betting to states that met a 1991 deadline to pass laws approving it: Delaware, Montana, Nevada and Oregon. At the time, New Jersey was given the chance to become the fifth state but failed to act during a prescribed window.

Major League Baseball, the National Football League, the National Basketball Association and the National Hockey League, along with the National Collegiate Athletic Association, all support the ban, saying it upholds the integrity of the games in the public’s mind.

In his filing, Olson wrote that the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act needs to be reviewed by the court immediately. He noted that sports betting was overwhelmingly favored in a non-binding referendum put before New Jersey voters.

“New Jersey’s citizens voted overwhelmingly in favor of sports wagering, and their representatives seek to respond, through the enactment of positive law,” Olson wrote.

No federal law directly prohibits individuals from betting on sports, the state argues. Rather, the law makes it illegal for a “governmental entity” to license or authorize sports wagering activity. New Jersey argues that Congress has no authority to regulate the approval or disapproval of activities expressed by individual states.

The state has been trying to overturn the federal law banning sports betting in the other 46 states since 2009, when a state lawmaker sued the federal government over the ban. Most recently, Gov. Chris Christie decided in 2012 to try to overturn the ban, knowing it would be an uphill fight.

New Jersey wants legalized sports betting as a way to generate new revenue and customers for its struggling casinos and horse racing tracks, as well as to garner taxes from money now flowing to illegal betting operations.

The Supreme Court could indicate this month whether or not it will hear the case.