(Radio Iowa) – Dry weather gave farmers almost a full week of field time and the latest corn and soybean harvest numbers show the result. The U-S-D-A report show 16 percent of corn was out of the fields by the end of last week. That is up nine percent from the previous week and the corn harvest is now four days ahead of last year and the five-year average. Corn condition improved slightly to 51 percent good to excellent.

The soybeans harvested more than doubled — hitting 24 percent — up from 11 percent the week before. Beans are right about on schedule, just one day ahead of last year, and equal to the average. Soybean condition improved two percentage points so 49 percent are rated in good to excellent condition.

Combine harvesting corn. (ISU Extension photo)

(Atlantic, Iowa) – Produce in the Park is a weekly farmers market and community gathering held every Thursday evening from 4:30 PM – 6:30 PM in the Atlantic City Park. This week and next are the final two markets of the season! This week (Oct. 5th), local musician Sarah Selders will be providing live music and fan favorite, Pim’s Thai, will be on site from 4:30 PM – 6:30 PM. Yard games, provided by Atlantic Parks & Recreation, will be available for kids of all ages to enjoy. Numerous vendors will be in attendance offering a variety of products including baked goods, produce, sweet treats and crafts.

This week you can also look forward to the following specialty items with numerous other vendors and community organizations in attendance:

Bridgewater Farms: wide assortment of produce including sweet potatoes
Brun Ko Farms: honey, radishes, peppers, sweet snacking peppers, 5, 10 & 20 lb boxes of heirloom slicing tomatoes, onions, garlic & jalapenos and leeks
CK3 Farms: wide assortment of produce including watermelon
Harrisdale Farmstead: assortment of produce including grapes
Imagine Garden Gifts: unique garden gifts including antique, vintage, and repurposed planters.
Kringleman: assorted Danish pastries
Neighborhood Bakehouse: sourdough, baguettes, sandwich bread & pumpkin spice sourdough
Noble Provisions: homegrown ribeyes, beef snacks (jerky, summer sausage, beef sticks), beef brats, patties, pork brats, Italian sausage, & ground pork

Noble Provisions

Piper’s Brae: aronia berries, aronia jam & eggs

All vendors accept cash, with many accepting credit cards and Venmo. All qualifying food vendors accept SNAP/EBT (also known as food stamps) with all fresh produce vendors accepting Double Up Food Bucks–coupons given for SNAP/EBT purchases of fresh produce. Produce in the Park is sponsored by: First Whitney Bank & Trust, Cass Health, Nishna Valley Family YMCA, Gregg Young of Atlantic, Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce and the City of Atlantic.

For updates and information on Produce in the Park or how to sign up to participate, visit www.produceintheparkatlanticiowa.com. ‘Like’ or ‘follow’ Produce in the Park on Facebook (www.facebook.com/ProduceInThePark) or Instagram (www.instagram.com/produceintheparkatlanticia/).

(Radio Iowa) – Head, heart, hands and health are the four principles on which 4-H was founded, and the organization devoted to helping youth develop skills they can use now and throughout their lives is celebrating its founding this week. Emily Saveraid is executive director of the Iowa 4-H Foundation and she says the program has more than a century of history in our state and it’s still very much alive. “We reach about 120,000 young people throughout the state of Iowa, so that is both in 4-H clubs, it could be during some after school specialty clubs, special camps, all those types of things,” Saveraid says, “so lots of different ways for young people to interact with the 4-H program.”

Saveraid says many Iowa 4-H clubs are holding events to celebrate this week. “One special thing that the foundation hosts during National 4-H Week is Iowa 4-H Giving Day,” Saveraid says. “It’s an opportunity for alums and friends to give back to either their local 4-H program or a special area of the 4-H program that they were really passionate about.”
Saversaid says she’s excited about the future of the program in Iowa. “Really it’s about giving young people an opportunity to find that spark,” she says, “and to create places where young people can gather and feel safe and feel like they belong and can really explore those passions.”

Learn more by contacting your nearest county I-S-U Extension and Outreach office or by visiting: https://www.iowa4hfoundation.org/.

(Radio Iowa) – One of the joys of fall in Iowa is going to an orchard to get apples freshly picked off the trees. I-S-U Extension fruit crop specialist, Suzanne Slack, says the drought has had some impact, especially for the growers who couldn’t irrigate their crop. One is the size of the fruit you see on the trees. “It looks like a lot of apples, but they’re really small. So the size isn’t good. They’ve also ripened up to three weeks early, which can be pretty detrimental, especially, you know, trying to get labor and operations up and running,” Slack says. Some apples are impacted in their appearance.

“Some cultivars, like honey crisp is a good one, they don’t transport calcium very well to begin with. And then whenever we have drought and hot conditions, they just don’t do it at all and we get a condition called bitter pit. So a lot of the Honeycrisp across the state have bitter pit this year, which is calcium deficiency,” she says. “It makes them ugly, it makes it makes them have little crevices, like a little pit. They call it bitter because it’s unfortunate and upsetting.” She says the smaller size and earlier maturation can impact taste as well. ” I think it makes them taste a little bit, not as strong of an apple taste, kind of like more of a mild apple taste,” Slack explains. “They’re still crunchy, they still have a good texture. But they might not have that, like, wham, pow apple flavor that some cultivars have. They also won’t be as juicy.”

Slack says getting the apples right out of the orchard is still the best way to ensure you are getting the freshest fruit possible. “Some of the apples that we’re eating this year from the grocery store might have actually been picked last year. The technology around storing apples is pretty impressive,” she says. “So we can store them for years with controlled environments. So the ones that you’d be getting locally were fresh picked this year.” She says finding an apple orchard in Iowa is not tough. )”According to my records, we have about 50, large to medium operations. But there’s a lot of smaller ones that may not be on my list. But pretty much if you live in Iowa, you live within about an hour from an orchard at least, most people live closer than that,” Slack says.

Slack says there are also a lot of people who grow their own from a couple of trees to bigger stands. “We have lots and lots of hobby growers with you know, there’s a couple of folks that have 50 to 100 trees and they don’t sell anything. So there’s every level you can think of,” she says. Slack says with the early maturation, you might want to get out sooner than later to find the best selection of fresh apples.

(College Park, MD) – NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center released its latest monthly drought outlook for October 2023, showing where drought is expected to improve, worsen, or remain the same over the next month: Atlantic, Iowa is currently in Moderate Drought (D1), according to the U.S. Drought Monitor, and conditions are expected to persist over the next month.

(Southwest Iowa) – In response to a rash of recent field and ditch fires having taken place, another southwest Iowa County has been placed under a Burn Ban. No open burning is allowed in Audubon County by Order of the State Fire Marshall, per a request from Audubon County Emergency Management Director Tyler Thygesen, acting on behalf of the fire department chiefs in Audubon County.

The Audubon County Burn Ban is in effect now (Oct. 1st) until further notice (when conditions are such that a danger to life and/or property does not exist from opening burning, and at the discretion of the Fire Marshal). Any violation of the proclamation is a simple misdemeanor, punishable by a $200 fine.

A burn ban does not prohibit the following:  supervised, controlled burn for which a permit has been issued by the fire chief of the fire district where the burn will take place, the use of outdoor fireplaces, barbecue grills, properly supervised landfills, or the burning of trash in incinerators or trash burners made of metal, concrete, masonry, or heavy one-inch wire mesh, with no openings greater than one square inch.

Previously, officials in Shelby County announced a Burn Ban was in effect beginning Oct. 1st, and until further notice. Harrison and Crawford Counties have also instituted a ban on opening burning over the  past 10-days.

RED OAK, Iowa – U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Ranking Member of the Senate Small Business Committee, this week, announced her Small Business of the Week: Dunlap Livestock Auction of Harrison County. Throughout this Congress, Ranking Member Ernst plans to recognize a small business in every one of Iowa’s 99 counties. 

“I want to congratulate the Schaben family and the team at Dunlap Livestock Auction for their longstanding dedication to maintaining an open and competitive marketplace that brings together not only livestock buyers and sellers but the entire Dunlap community,” said Ranking Member Ernst. “Dunlap Livestock Auction honors agriculture traditions while also innovating to meet modern-day needs, and I can’t wait to see their continued success in western Iowa.”

From their first auction of less than thirty head of cattle, hogs, and sheep to now regularly moving thousands of cattle through each sale, the Schaben family has grown Dunlap Livestock Auction into a prominent and well-respected livestock marketplace in Harrison County. Jim and Ruth Schaben purchased Dunlap Livestock Auction in 1950 and have continued to expand the business since, selling the company to their sons, Jay, Jim Jr., and John in the early 1990s. Today, they also offer home and estate, farm machinery, gun, and real estate auctions for clients throughout the Midwest and remain committed to serving their community and the cattle industry.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – It’s that time of year once again, when the Cass County Conservation Board asks “When do you think the first Trumpeter Swan will arrive at the Schildberg Quarry?” Please call in your prediction (by November 10^th) to the Conservation Board at 712-769-2372, leave a message and return phone number if their staff are not in.

Duplicate dates will not be allowed. For example, if a caller predicts November 25th, no one else will be allowed to predict that arrival date. So, call anytime until November 10th to make your prediction! One prediction per family, please. The sponsors of this contest will determine the official arrival of more than 6 trumpeter swans to Lake 4, and if they arrive before the Nov. 10^th no more dates will be taken.

The winner will receive a Trumpeter Swan Prize from the Cass County Conservation Board. Sorry, this contest is only for residents of Cass County.

Trumpeter Swans have visited the Schildberg Quarry for, at least, Twenty-four out of the last twenty-five winters. Arrival and departure dates of the swans have been as follows:

1997/1998 December 18 – January 2

1998/1999 Nothing on record

1999/2000 December 25 – February 15

2000/2001 November 23 – March 6

2001/2002 December 25 – February 24

2002/2003 November 23 – March 15

2003/2004 November 26 – March 21

2004/2005 November 25 – March 18

2005/2006 November 17 – March 5

2006/2007 October 30 – March 9

2007/2008 November 22- February 14

2008/2009 November 18- March 12

2009-2010 November 19 – January 5

2010-2011 November 5 – February 10

2011/2012 November 17 – February 21

2012/2013 November 24– March 4

2013/2014 November 12- April 7

2014/2015 November 11- April 6

2015/2016 November 22- March 24

2016/2017 November 19- March 9

2017/2018 November 9- March 20

2018/2019 November 11- January 23

2019/2020 November 8- March 3

2020/2021 November 30- February 13

2021/2022 November 22- February 28

2022/2023 November 22- February 22

(Harlan, Iowa) – Officials with the Shelby County Emergency Management Agency report the County will be going into a burn ban, starting Sunday, October 1st. The ban is being implemented due to a high fire danger, and water shortages around the county. The Shelby County EMA will update residents when the ban is lifted.