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There'snothinglikea series of sunny days to wake up my inner gar- dener. And apparently, I'm not the only one who has this reaction, as evidenced by my inbox these past few weeks. DEAR MARY: I just moved into my first home after living in an apart- ment for the last 10 years, and I really want to get started with a small to- mato and herb garden. Do you have any sugges- tions for some tools that I should purchase to get started? Thanks for your help. I love your column and read it daily. — Asher DEAR ASHER: I've got gardening on my mind, too. We are enjoying our first spring here in Col- orado, which has intro- duced me to the phenome- non of spring fever! I can't wait to get my hands dirty and my garden planted. With that in mind, here's a list of my favor- ite inexpensive yard and garden gadgets and gear. While this may look like a sizable investment, it's not likely you will need all of these items on day one. Just hang onto this list as you look to furnish your garden shed over the com- ing months and years. I'd rather see you spend a few more dollars on good- quality tools in the begin- ning than find yourself having to replace poor- quality items every season. I've been there, done that, and I wasn't very happy about it. GLOVES. I tried out so many pairs until I found the gloves that work for me. Atlas Touch Gloves are awesome. Made of cotton with nitrile coating (sim- ilar to vinyl) on the palm and fingers, these gloves fit so well and are so flexible I can easily open a can, pick up a small pebble or even take a call while wearing them. A pack of six pairs in a size small is just $22 ($3.66 a pair). The large size costs $15 or $2.50 per pair. These gloves are ma- chine washable, too. Best garden gloves ever. TROWEL. You need a good trowel for digging, cutting and scooping dirt. It needs to have a wide, sharp edge to cut through roots and grasses in a sin- gle pass. The handle needs to be smooth and easy to grip. Few trowels I've tried meet all of that criteria at a price I'm willing to pay, but this one does. The Wil- cox 14-inch Garden Trowel is perfect in every way. The blade has a ruler that helps me make sure I'm planting seeds, seedlings and bulbs at a uniform depth. And it costs less than $20. WEEDER. The Hula- Ho Weeder is almost magic. Known by some as the weeder with a wig- gle, you'll think this thing broken the first time you pick it up because the self- sharpening blade is loose. But that's the magic: It moves back-and-forth. It will forever change the way you weed, aerate, mulch and cultivate your garden. I have the luxury of having two of these ba- bies: one with a 14-inch handle ($12) and a full-size one with a 54-inch handle (about $14). SHOVEL. To me, the right shovel is like having the right vacuum. I use my Shark vacuum daily be- cause it fits and it works. Same with my shovel. It has to fit my hands with- out giving me splinters. The Bully Tools Round Point Shovel with a closed handle is without doubt the best choice. And at about $45, it's a great deal. I love the fiberglass han- dle that will not rot, splin- ter or require any kind of maintenance. Hint: I keep my tools in a bucket of sand. Once I hose off this shovel (and all of my tools for that matter), I plunge the end of it into the sand before hanging it up. That keeps the blade edge sharp, leaving a light coating of oil that prevents rust. PRUNER. Great for cut- ting branches up to one- half of an inch thick, these are bypass shears, which cut like scissors and make cleaner cuts. I'm sold on Fiskars Traditional By- pass Pruning Shears. This pruner cuts stems and light branches with ease. And it has a self-clean- ing sap groove that keeps the blade from sticking even when I need to cut through icky sticky stuff. BOW RAKE. A strong rake is an absolute necessity for combing rocks and clods out of a bed and leveling the soil for seed sowing. I suggest that you spend a bit more to get a great heavy-duty rake like the Truper 31380 Tru Pro 60- Inch Bow Rake with a fi- berglass handle. It will last a lifetime, carrying you through even the big- gest jobs, like raking rocks or pulling roots and vines when its time to winterize the garden. It costs about $33. REEL MOWER. Hands down, this is the best lawn mower if you want to mow the old-fashioned way and get a little exercise while you do it. The Scotts Great States 20-inch mower is without a doubt the best in the push mower class. This little machine cuts through grass (notice I didn't say tears through grass) like its butter. It makes the cleanest cuts ever, is easy to adjust for mowing height and makes the cleanest cut ever, which promotes healthy grass. If you have child- hood memories of a reel mower that gets jammed up and is nearly impossi- ble to push, let those mem- ories go. Push mowing has never been easier or cheaper. This costs about $120. LEAF RAKE. I hate it when the tines on a leaf rake get clogged and I have to stop, reach down and pull all the debris out. The reason I love the Ames True Temper Kodiak Leaf Rake is that the tines have a spring base to prevent that from happening. And the handle is 54-inches, which allows you to reach far behind bushes and around hedges. This one goes for about $24. GARDEN KNEELER. If the thought of kneel- ing in your garden as you tend to routine gardening chores makes you wince in pain, relax. What you need is an excellent kneeling pad that is thick enough to provide comfort, and large enough to kneel on effort- lessly. You will find that in InSassy Garden Kneeler Wave Pad, which costs about $8. EVERYDAYCHEAPSKATE The best inexpensive gadgets and gear for a do-it-yourself gardener COURTESYPHOTOBYD.JENSEN Bareback riding at the Stonyford Rodeo. STONYFORD The 73rd Annual Stonyford Rodeo is shaping up to be a good one, with stock contrac- tors John Growney and Don Kish reporting their animal athletes, especially the bulls, are in peak con- dition. Competing amateurs come from local ranches and the professionals, who do rodeo for a living, come in from all around the country. Protecting the cowboys are the bull- fighters, the pick-up men and the barrelman. The bullfighters and barrel- man distract the bulls and steers after they've thrown their riders, to prevent in- jury. The pick-up men are the expert horsemen who come along side of a buck- ing horse to retrieve the rider still aboard at the sound of the buzzer. At Stonyford, these pro- fessionals are among the best in the business. Eric Layton and Tim O'Conner are the bullfighters, Bobby Marriott and Matt Twitch- ell are the pick-up men, and Wolfey Selvester is in the barrel. To keep the fans in- formed about the action underway is announcer Don Jesser. Don is usu- ally on horseback, in the arena and close to the ac- tion; his wife, Anita, is the sound engineer in the booth who keeps the loud- speakers booming out mu- sic and information. Other unsung profes- sionals who work behind the scenes to keep the ac- tion moving are the judges and the rodeo secretary, Hailey Schneeberger. This year the action be- gins at 3 p.m. Friday with the crowning of this year's rodeo queen followed by barrel racing. On Saturday, the day starts with break- fast 7-10 a.m. at the Stony- ford Fire Hall. Breakfast is followed by a small-town parade at 10 a.m. that lasts for about an hour. The ro- deo starts at 1 p.m. The weekend contin- ues on Sunday with break- fast 7 to 10 a.m., again at the Stonyford Fire Hall. Afterwards, you may at- tend worship at the Cow- boy Church, in the rodeo arena at 8 a.m. or at either of two protestant churches: The Stonyford Community Church, at 10:15 a.m. or the Indian Valley Assembly of God Church, at 11 a.m. The rodeo begins at noon. The nearest motels are 40 miles distant, in ei- ther Willows, Williams or Colusa. Information on camping can be found at www.countyofcolusa.org and www.stonycreekhorse- men.org." RodeoactionkicksoffFriday STONYFORD The following are sched- uled activities for Mount Lassen Chapter California Native Plant Society. All ac- tivities are free and open to the public. For more infor- mation, visit mountlassen. cnps.org. • Water-Wise and Habi- tat-Friendly Garden Tour, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, May 1, Chico Delight in spring bloom at more than a dozen Chico gardens that showcase al- ternatives to traditional landscaping and are alive with birds and pollinators. Admission is free, but par- ticipants must register on- line in advance at mount- lassen.cnps.org. A map, garden addresses and tour directions will be sent by email to registrants the day before the tour. This tour is co-sponsored by Altacal Audubon Society's Neigh- borhood Habitat Certifi- cation Program and Butte Environmental Council. • General Meeting, 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, May 4, Chico Public Library Sonoma County au- thor and historical ecolo- gist Arthur Dawson will explore how historical re- search and field work can be combined to reconstruct 19th century vegetation patterns, helping to iden- tify long-term trends and guide conservation and restoration efforts. • Natural Bridge, Trin- ity National Forest, Sun- day, May 15 Meet at Chico Park & Ride west lot at 8:30 p.m. Bring lunch, water, sun and insect protection and money for ride sharing. Wear sturdy shoes as the trail is rocky and rough in places. The location is a 2- hour drive from Chico northwest of Platina. This site, with a massive natu- ral limestone bridge as long been held sacred by the Wintu tribe as the location of a massacre of 140 women and children in 1852. The area has botanical interest with varied hab- itats within a small area. Organizers expect to see two rare Cyprepedium or- chids in bloom. Call leader Marjorie at 343-2397 for more information or alter- nate meeting site. • Maidu Medicine Walk, Sunday, May 22 Meet at 9 a.m. at Horse- shoe Lake parking lot E in upper Bidwell Park with sunscreen, hat and walk- ing shoes to see about 30 plants the local Native Americans used for medi- cine, food and crafts, such as lemonade berry for bas- ketry and a refreshing drink, soap plant for suds and brushes and foothill pine for skin salve and food. The group will stroll about a mile through foot- hill woodland ending up at Big Chico Creek riparian area at noon. Rain cancels. Call leader Wes for more information at 342-2293. NATIVE PLANTS Mount Lassen chapter events for May listed Caltrans and the Fed- eral Highway Administra- tion (FHWA) invite public comment on a proposal to continue delegating cer- tain federal responsibilities that streamline the envi- ronmental review process without removing protec- tions to Caltrans. The FHWA authoriza- tion simplifies and speeds the review and approval of environmental docu- ments prepared for trans- portation projects. This re- duces the number of steps in the environmental re- view and approval process without reducing or affect- ing National Environmen- tal Policy Act protection. These time savings allow Caltrans to approve more projects and deliver them quickly. SinceJune7,2007,FHWA has authorized Caltrans to perform these responsibil- ities through a memoran- dum of understanding. The authorization was renewed in 2010 and 2013 and is set to expire on June 7. Public comments must be received on or before May 11 and should be iden- tified by the Federal Dock- ets Management System Docket Number FHWA- 2016-0007. For more in- formation and to make comments online, visit: https://www.regulations. gov/#!docketDetail;D=F HWA-2016-0007. Comments may also be submitted by fax to 1-202- 493-2251 and by mail to Docket Management Fa- cility; U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Ave. SE, Washing- ton, DC 20590. For information on the responsibilities of Caltrans under this pro- gram, visit: http://www. dot.ca.gov/hq/env/nepa/ html/categorical_exclu- sion.htm. 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