The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) next month, will release 14 trumpeter swans at three locations in southwest Iowa as part of the effort to create a self-sustaining population of swans south of Interstate 80. All releases will occur rain or shine. Six swans will be released on the north side of Lake Icaria at the east boat ramp on May 9 at 9:30 a.m., in partnership with the Adams County Conservation Board. Two swans will be released at Viking Lake near the restaurant/beach area on May 9 at 1 p.m. Six swans will be released at Lake Anita on May 10 at 1:30 p.m., in partnership with the Cass County Conservation Board.

Lake Icaria Trumpeter Swan Program (IA DNR file photo)

Thee releases are part of the Iowa DNR’s statewide effort to restore trumpeter swans to Iowa that began in 1993. Trumpeter swans were once common in Iowa, but were gone from the state by the late 1880s. By the early 1930s, only 69 trumpeter swans remained in the lower 48 states.  It takes six years, on average, before trumpeter swans successfully nest. Last year, Iowa was home to 54 pairs of nesting trumpeter swans; however, only two of those nesting pairs were south of I-80. Dave Hoffman, wildlife research technician with the Iowa DNR, said the goal is to raise that number to eight, which would likely create a self-sustaining population. “We are hopeful to get them nesting here in a year or two,” Hoffman said. “We had swans displaying some territorial signs at Lake Icaria, which is encouraging.”

As the largest North American waterfowl, these all-white birds can weigh up to 32 pounds and have an 8-foot wingspan. The trumpeter swans being released are young and flightless and will imprint on the area where they learn to fly, returning each year as open water is available. The swans were donated to the project from zoos in Cleveland, Kansas City, Green Bay, Wis., Oklahoma City, Bronx, Anchorage, Alaska and Maryland.

Each event includes a swan and wetland presentation, an opportunity to touch and view the swans up close, and a photo opportunity with the kids. Staff from the Kansas City Zoo will be on hand offering educational activities, and filmmaker Steve Harryman may be at these releases collecting footage for an upcoming documentary “Return of the Trumpeter Swans, in partnership with the Trumpeter Swan Society.

Officials with the Iowa DNR report that at around 6-p.m. Monday, the Iowa DNR Field Office 4 staff was notified about a potential discharge occurring at Cyclone Cattle Open Cattle Feedlot in Carson, Iowa. Upon investigation, DNR staff made contact with the owner of Cyclone Cattle and he said he was land applying manure-laden water from an on-site settled open feedlot effluent basins (SOFEBs) to an adjacent property.

During the land application efforts, the manure-laden water from the pivot flowed through a grassed waterway in the application field and flowed into an unnamed tributary of the West Nishnabotna River. A fish kill was not observed and water samples were collected for analysis. The center pivot was turned off at approximately 8:30 pm. The cause of discharge into the tributary remains under investigation, but is believed to be a mechanical issue, and appropriate enforcement will be considered.

Cass County Extension is hosting an informational meeting this week for local residents who want to learn more about the invasive Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) pest. In mid-February, the presence of EAB was confirmed for the first time in Cass County, on a private property site in rural Massena. Since the first Iowa detection in 2010, the invasive, tree-killing pest has spread to 66 Iowa counties. EAB is a small, metallic green beetle native to Asia that attacks ash species. In its larval stage, the insect feeds just beneath the bark disrupting the movement of water and nutrients within the tree. Infested trees usually die within two to four years.

The meeting will be held on Thursday, April 18th, from 6:30 to 8 PM at the Cass County Community Center, 805 West 10th St., in Atlantic. There is no cost to attend the meeting, and no pre-registration is required. The meeting is for any interested home/land owner and other concerned citizens. The meeting will focus on identifying susceptible ash trees, the EAB insect and signs of infestation. Tree safety, treatment options, methods of spread for EAB and options to replace ash trees will also be covered.

Presenters for the event are Dr. Donald Lewis, ISU Professor and Extension Entomologist; Mike Kintner, IDALS Entomologist and EAB Coordinator; and Lindsey Barney, District Forester with the Iowa DNR. Time for will also be allowed for questions and discussion. For more information about the workshop, visit www.extension.iastate.edu/cass, stop by the Cass County Extension Office, or call (712) 243-1132.

The East Pottawattamie County 4-H program offered “Cooking with Kids” afterschool program on Wednesday’s in March and April at the Carson United Methodist Church for all 4th grade youth.  Youth spent the afternoon learning about basics and safety of cooking and baking, measuring, reading a recipe, using kitchen utensils and appliances, setting a table, manners and working together.

East Pott. County Extension officials say throughout the sessions, youth learned to crack eggs, cook meat to the safe internal temperature, dice up meat and fruit, use the stove top, oven, blender, griddle, make French toast, mini chicken pot pies, fruit smoothies, peanut butter cookies, toss salad, and fruit salad all while getting to taste test and learn how to perfect their recipes.  Youth also created a cookbook with a collection of all of their recipes along the way.

Cooking with Kids Riverside 2019
Front row – Myah Husz, Ashlinn Chappelear, Caelen Schueman, Kayler Kallsen. Middle Row – Paisley Anderson, Mia Husz, Courtney Kvaal, Sarah Cody. Back Row – Sophia Fenner, Julienne Schutt, Kaleb Myers, Owen Fenner, Nathan Smith, Hunter Shady. Not pictured is Jaxon Kadel.

(Lenexa, Kansas, April 11, 2019) – Both federal and state agencies are asking Iowans to report any dangerous containers displaced by floodwaters in western Iowa. Recent flooding scattered tanks, drums, cylinders and barrels onto properties adjacent to the Missouri River and its Iowa tributaries. These items may contain hazardous materials such as propane and industrial chemicals and should only be handled by trained professionals.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has been given a Federal Emergency Management Agency mission assignment to coordinate hazardous material recovery along the I-29 corridor in Iowa. EPA is working closely with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources to identify and retrieve containers swept away by floodwaters in Iowa. Iowa residents are encouraged to report displaced (“orphaned”) tanks, drums or other containers found in flood debris using the online form located on the Iowa DNR Disaster Assistance web site.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The latest Census of Agriculture shows the number of farms and ranches in the U.S. has fallen but the remaining operations are larger and are responsible for a higher percentage of agricultural sales.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture released the 2017 Census of Agriculture on Thursday, marking the 29th release of the report since the government began collecting the data in 1840. Since 1982, it has been released every five years.

The census shows there were 2.04 million farms and ranches in 2017, down 3.2 percent from 2012. The average size of those operations was 441 acres, an increase of 1.6 percent.

About 75 percent of all sales came from only 105,453 of those farms, down more than 14,000 from 2012. The average age of producers was 57.5.

• KJAN, Atlantic  .14″
• Missouri Valley  .8″
• Manning  .46″
• Logan  .49″
• Council Bluffs  .38″
• Carroll  .37″
• Denison  .3″
• Irwin  .56″

(Revised) USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) State Executive Director Amanda De Jong today (Wednesday) announced that effective immediately, emergency grazing use of Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) acres is approved in Iowa through May 14, 2019. The authorization was granted to address the impacts of the recent extreme weather, including flooding. Participation is limited to livestock producers who lost pasture or fences due to the flooding.

“By allowing emergency grazing, we expand the available resources to help Iowa producers respond to recent weather events,” De Jong said. Producers who are interested in the use of emergency grazing of CRP acres must request FSA county office approval before moving livestock onto the acres. Producers whose livestock grazing land was adversely impacted by the flood, must file a CCC-576 Notice of Loss or provide written certification of that loss. The request must include a modified conservation plan, with grazing provisions, from USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS).

CRP participants can allow others to use their CRP acres under this emergency grazing authorization; however, the livestock owners will also need to complete FSA paperwork indicating their grazing land was adversely impacted by severe weather. There will be no reduction in CRP rental payments to CRP contract holders who use the emergency grazing authorization. CRP contract holders are not permitted to charge livestock producers for the emergency grazing option.

For more information on eligible practices or to request approval for emergency grazing use of CRP acres, contact your local FSA office or visit www.farmers.gov/service-locator.

(Radio Iowa) — For only the second time in its history, the National Pork Producers Council has cancelled the World Pork Expo in Des Moines. Jim Monroe, the council’s communications director, says the decision was made out of an abundance of caution. “We think the chances that African Swine Fever could spread to the U.S. swine herd by holding the event are very, very remote,” he says, “but we can’t say that it’s zero.”

African Swine Fever is a viral disease that causes high death rates in pigs. It does NOT present human health or food safety risks. Monroe says an outbreak of the disease in the U.S. would be a devastating economic below to the livestock industry. “There’s already a challenging environment that pork producers are operating in and if we had an outbreak of African Swine Fever or Foot and Mouth Disease, for example, that would immediately close our export markets,” Monroe says.

The National Pork Producers Council has hosted the World Pork Expo since 1987. The only other time the annual event was cancelled was in 2001, when Foot and Mouth Disease was detected in Europe. Despite the EXPO’S cancellation, the National Swine Registry, Certified Pedigree Swine and American Berkshire Association are still planning a live hog show at the Iowa State Fairgrounds that typically runs in conjunction with the World Pork Expo. The groups have been working to confirm logistics for the events from June 2nd through the 8th and will provide those to exhibitors once all those details are finalized.

Atlantic Trees Forever spokesperson Dolly Bergmann said today (Wednesday), that Spring tree vouchers are now available from the Atlantic Trees Forever. Tree vouchers are a great way to help individuals with the cost of purchasing a tree to plant. The vouchers are worth $30 off the price of a tree, and can be obtained at Pymosa Farms, north of Atlantic.

Bergmann advised that there are a limited number of vouchers available and said officials at Pymosa Farms could help you determine what kind of tree would do best for your location. The business is located at 50979 Buck Creek Road, Atlantic. Bergmann suggests you contact owner Tim Reavis at 402-659-1213 before driving to the farm to make sure someone is available to help you since he and his employees may be out planting trees.