(Radio Iowa) – The extreme heat of July is starting to stress some of Iowa’s corn and soybean crops, as conditions vary across the state. Iowa State University Extension field agronomist Angie Rieck-Hinz says much of the corn crop in western Iowa is having a difficult time. “Even the rain we get now is probably not going to help that a whole lot, just because it’s been so dry there for so long,” Rieck-Hinz says. “The rest of Iowa, like northeast Iowa, is fairly wet. I don’t anticipate seeing any yield loss potential on that, simply from the standpoint that they’ve had adequate rain.”

The condition of Iowa’s soybean fields is wide ranging as well. “South-central Iowa, west-central Iowa, southwestern Iowa, those beans look stressed,” she says. “You get anywhere else in north-central Iowa and going into northeast Iowa, the beans look really good. Almost to R-3 in almost all of the bean fields, which means we’re at beginning pods.”  This past weekend brought Iowa some of the most oppressive heat of the year, with heat indices statewide in triple digits, so soybeans are becoming more and more stressed.

“We’re really pushing that crop this year with this heat,” Rieck-Hinz says. “I think the big challenge we’re going to look at going forward in time with beans is, we’ll see whether we get a pest outbreak or not.” Rieck-Hinz is based at the Wright County Extension Office in Clarion.

The 2020 Pottawattamie County Fair Beef Show was held on Saturday morning. Here are the Champion and Reserve Champion winners in each class.

Champion Registered Angus Heifer: Sarah Cody

Champion Registered Scottish Highland Heifer: Isabelle Cody

Champion Commercial Breeding Heifer: Isaac Stamp
Reserve Champion Commercial Breeding Heifer: Isabelle Cody

Overall Breeding Beef: Sarah Cody
Reserve Overall Breeding Beef: Isabelle Cody

Champion Market Heifer: Isaac Stamp
Reserve Champion Market Heifer: Julia Kock

Champion Market Steer: Isaac Stamp
Reserve Champion Market Steer: Megan Wise

Overall Market Beef: Isaac Stamp
Reserve Overall Champion Market Beef: Megan Wise

Senior Showmanship: Nathan Messerschmidt
Intermediate Showman: Isaac Stamp
Junior Showman: Sarah Cody
Overall Showmanship: Sarah Cody

Champion Rate of Gain: Megan Wise, 3.5 ADG

• Market Individual Grand Champion:  Lane Elmquist  Reserve:  Ty Bowlin
• Commercial Breeding Gilt Grand Champion:  Lane Elmquist  Reserve:  Ty Bowlin
• Pen of 3 Champion:  Sienna Albertsen
• Production Individual Champion:  Aiden Kjergaard  Reserve:  Rylan Hansen
• Production Pen of 3 Champion:  Aiden Kjergaard  Reserve:  Colton Hansen
• Champion Senior Showman:  Sienna Albertsen
• Champion Intermediate Showman:  Carter Essick
• Champion Junior Showman:  Leyton Elmquist
• Champion Master Showman:  Lane Elmquist

• Lightweight Market Barrow Champion:  Sidney Nelsen, Reserve:  Nicole Hanson
• Middleweight Market Barrow Champion:  Cheyenne Obrecht, Reserve:  Ryleigh Obrecht
• Heavyweight Market Barrow Champion:  Sidney Nelsen, Reserve: Nicole Lange
• Overall Market Barrow Champion:  Cheyenne Obrecht, Reserve:  Sidney Nelsen
• Lightweight Market Gilt Champion:  Kyley Nelsen, Reserve:  Macey Goshorn
• Middleweight Market Gilt Champion:  Ryleigh Obrecht, Reserve:  Nicole Hanson
• Heavyweight Market Gilt Champion:  Braden Fineran, Reserve:  Brooke Goshorn
• Overall Market Gilt Champion:  Ryleigh Obrecht, Reserve:  Kyley Nelsen
• Supreme Hog Champion:  Cheyenne Obrecht, Reserve:  Sidney Nelsen
• Lightweight Pen of 3 Champion:  Nicole Hanson, Reserve:  Cael Goshorn
• Middleweight Pen of 3 Champion:  Ries Andersen, Reserve:  Delaney Goshorn
• Heavyweight Pen of 3 Champion:  Cael Goshorn, Reserve:  Emily Gross
• Pen of 3 Grand Champion:  Nicole Hanson, Reserve:  Ries Andersen
• Breeding Gilt Champion:  Kyley Nelsen, Reserve:  Nicole Lange
• Junior Showmanship Champion:  Cheyenne Obrecht, Reserve:  Macey Goshorn
• Intermediate Showmanship Champion:  Delaney Goshorn, Reserve:  Ries Andersen
• Senior Showmanship Champion:  Ryleigh Obrecht, Reserve:  Abigail Jacobsen
• Overall Swine Showmanship Champion:  Ryleigh Obrecht, Reserve:  Abigail Jacobsen

Pottawattamie County Fair Results are now available on the ISU Extension Website, and includes (as of Friday), results for – Clothing Event, Educational Presentations, Share the Fun, Working Exhibits, Static Exhibits, Tall Corn Contest, Junk in the Bucket, Goat Show and Sheep Show!

Swine Show

• Champion Market Barrow- Allie Sandin
• Reserve Champion Market Barrow- Kennedy Devries
• Champion Market Gilt- Caleb Oakleaf
• Reserve Champion Market Gilt- Leah Sandin
• Overall Grand Champion Market Hog- Allie Sandin
• Overall Reserve Grand Champion Market Hog- Kennedy Devries
• Grand Champion Breeding Gilt- Kennedy Devries
• Reserve Grand Champion Breeding Gilt- Kennedy Devries
• Champion Beginner Showman- William Pollock
• Champion Jr/Intermediate Showman- Kennedy DeVries
• Champion Senior Showman- Allie Sandin
• Grand Champion Overall Showman– Kennedy DeVries

Sheep Show

• Champion Commercial Breeding Ram- Slade Graham
• Champion Commercial Breeding Ewe- Leah Sandin
• Reserve Champion Commercial Breeding Ewe- Gage Sesker
• Grand Champion Commercial Breeding Lamb- Leah Sandin
• Reserve Grand Champion Commercial Breeding Lamb- Gage Sesker
• Champion Home Raised Market Lamb- Leah Sandin
• Reserve Champion Home Raised Markey Lamb- Jolee Fisher
• Champion Purchased Market Lamb- Allie Sandin
• Reserve Champion Purchased Market Lamb- Gage Sesker
• Overall Grand Champion Market Lamb- Allie Sandin
• Overall Reserve Grand Champion Market Lamb- Leah Sandin
• Champion Home Raised Pen of 3 Market Lambs- Jolee Fisher
• Champion Purchased Pen of 3 Market Lambs- Gage Sesker
• Reserve Champion Purchased Pen of 3 Market Lambs- Lilly Anderson
• Overall Grand Champion Pen of 3 Market Lambs- Gage Sesker
• Overall Reserve Grand Champion Pen of 3 Market Lambs- Jolee Fisher
• Champion Jr/Intermediate Showman- Gage Sesker
• Champion Senior Showman- Allie Sandin
• Grand Champion Overall Sheep Showman– Allie Sandin

Goat Show

• Champion Boer Doe- AJ Beeson
• Reserve Champion Boer Doe-Tyler Beeson
• Grand Champion Breeding Doe- AJ Beeson
• Reserve Grand Champion Breeding Doe- Tyler Beeson
• Champion Home Raised Market Goat- Rylee Jacobs
• Reserve Champion Home Raised Market Goat- Rose Nippert
• Champion Purchased Market Goat- Kyle Berkey
• Reserve Champion Purchased Market Goat- Cloie Bruce
• Overall Grand Champion Market Goat- Kyle Berkey
• Overall Reserve Grand Champion Market Goat- Rylee Jacobs
• Champion Beginner Showman- AJ Beeson
• Champion Jr/Intermediate Showman- Tyler Beeson
• Champion Senior Showman- Rylee Jacobs
• Overall Grand Champion Goat Showman– Rylee Jacobs

WINTERSET, IA – The Madison County Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors says it has made the difficult decision to cancel the 2020 Madison County Covered Bridge Festival that was to be held October 10-11. We are saddened by this outcome and will miss the joy of coming together and making memories with family, friends, and guests to our community.

Officials say “The Madison County Covered Bridge Festival is a long-standing tradition in our community that is well attended by both vendors and patrons, as well as guests from across Iowa and the Midwest. It is of the utmost importance to our organization and to the community that its integrity and quality is maintained. This 50-year-old community celebration of Madison County’s history and heritage needs to be a full-on celebration. In order to have the Festival this year, while maintaining safe social distances and hygienic practices, many elements that make our event special and unique would have been eliminated, and it would simply not be the same event that residents and visitors know and love. Sponsorship cutbacks, decreased vendor participation, fewer volunteers, and the added costs for preventive measures weighed heavily on our decision.”

The Board said also, “We are obligated to our sponsors, vendors, and other partners to give them time to make their own business decisions. All of us are mindful of the economic impact that the Covered Bridge Festival has on our community and know that our locally-owned and operated small businesses and non-profit groups need our support now more than ever. While the Madison County Covered Bridge Festival will take a year off, a group of volunteers from the planning committee is exploring ways to safely celebrate our community’s history and heritage this fall, as well as to adopt a few events that can better incorporate social distancing.” More information will be announced as they continue making those plans.

All sponsors, artisans, crafters, and vendors are invited to return for the 2021 Madison County Covered Bridge Festival, which will be held October 9-10, 2021.

The Audubon County Fair 2020 Sheep Show was held on Friday morning. Here are the Champion and Reserve Champion winners in each class.

Champion Breeding Ewe: Chase Buck.

Reserve Champion Breeding Ewe: Jayda Bowlin.

Champion Market Lamb: Chase Buck.

Reserve Champion Market Lamb: Jayda Bowlin.

Intermediate/Senior Showmanship: Braden Wessel.

Junior Showmanship: Lane Elmquist.

Master Showmanship: Jayda Bowlin.

The 2020 Audubon County Fair Goat Show was held on Friday morning. Here are the Champion and Reserve Champion winners from the show.

Champion Market Goat: Jaci Christensen

Reserve Champion Market Goat: Joe Klein

Champion Breeding Doe: Ashlyn Pruitt

Reserve Champion Breeding Doe: Brent Asberry

Intermediate/Senior Showmanship: Brent Asberry

Junior Showmanship: Joe Klein

Master Showmanship: Jaci Christensen