(Iowa DNR News, June 9, 2025) – Happy Wild Turtle Week! Wild Turtle Week is a week-long celebration of turtles led by the Partners in Amphibian and Reptile Conservation, the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, and the US Fish and Wildlife Service. For more information visit the Wild Turtle Week website.

Iowa is home to 13 turtle species; western painted turtle, snapping turtle, midland smooth softshell turtle, eastern spiny softshell turtle, red-eared slider, northern map turtle, Ouachita map turtle, northern false map turtle, ornate box turtle, Blanding’s turtle, wood turtle, eastern musk turtle, and yellow mud turtle.

Many of Iowa’s turtle species are aquatic or semi-aquatic, living in lakes, ponds, rivers, streams, marshes, and wetlands while ornate box turtles are primarily terrestrial, meaning they spend nearly all of their life on land, often in prairie areas.

Iowa’s Most Familiar Turtles

Western painted turtles, snapping turtles, and eastern spiny softshell turtles are widespread across the state and are turtles you may be likely to encounter.

Western painted turtles get their name from their bright coloration and can be identified by their yellow/orange plastron (meaning the bottom of their shell) that has a yellow/orange design outlined in black.

Snapping turtle adults are typically large with a large head in comparison to their body with a large, sharp, beak. Snapping turtles have a very distinctive appearance with a dark brown to black carapace (meaning the top of their shell) that has spikes at the back, a long tail with bumps along the top, and a reduced plastron with a tan or yellow color.

Eastern spiny softshell turtles get their name from their soft and flexible shell which has short spines along the upper portion near their head. This is one way they can be distinguished from the similar-looking smooth softshell turtle. They have a very long neck with a long, narrow, snout and large webbed feet. Eastern spiny softshell turtles often have circular markings on their carapace.

Turtle Conservation Challenges

Many of Iowa’s turtle species are in decline due to threats such as habitat loss and road mortalities. Since most of Iowa’s turtles spend part or much of their lives in or near water, they depend on healthy streams, rivers, ponds, wetlands, and lakes. Turtles are long-lived animals and take a long time to reach reproductive age, with few young turtles reaching that age. Therefore, the loss of even a few adult turtles from an area can be very detrimental to a local population. All of Iowa’s turtles besides painted turtles and red-eared sliders are identified in Iowa’s State Wildlife Action Plan as species of greatest conservation need. Blanding’s turtles, ornate box turtles, and eastern musk turtles are listed as state threatened and wood turtles and yellow mud turtles are listed as state endangered, meaning it is illegal to kill or collect these species.

What can you do to help Iowa’s turtles?

Contribute to non-game wildlife conservation through the Chickadee Checkoff, buy a Natural Resources License Plate, or donate directly to the Wildlife Diversity Program.

Avoid hitting turtles in the roadway and move them out of the roadway if it is safe for you to help them. Make sure to never pick up a turtle by the tail as this can damage their spine and only handle snapping turtles if you know how to safely and properly handle them. Make sure to always move the turtle across the road in the direction they were headed and never take a turtle with you to a different location. For more information on helpful tips for moving turtles out of the road check out this article from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Plant and create more habitat! You can take steps to make your property or yard more wildlife friendly and even if it doesn’t benefit turtles directly there are also many indirect benefits. Follow along this year with our Wildlife Where You Live series to learn more about how you can take steps to benefit wildlife on your property. Iowa DNR’s private lands program has staff that help advise private landowners about possible conservation practices that could be implemented on their lands. This includes wetland restoration, restoring and establishing grasslands, and forestry practices.
Want to learn more about turtles in Iowa?

Check out iowaherps.com or herpnet.net to learn more about Iowa’s turtle species!

(Radio Iowa) – A majority of the Iowa corn and soybeans planted have already emerged. The U-S-D-A weekly report shows corn planting is virtually done, and just three percent of the soybeans remain to be planted. That report shows 92 percent of the corn has popped out of the ground, which is two days behind normal.

Southwest Iowa lags is the only district under 90 percent emerged at 81 percent. Eighty-eight percent of the soybeans have emerged statewide, which is four days ahead of average.

North-central Iowa leads with 96 percent of the beans already poking out of the ground.

(Radio Iowa) – A parade of tractors rolled through Dyersville this weekend as part of the annual Farm Toy celebration. Jerry Klostermann of Bankston was driving his Case I-H 52-50 — a working tractor that’s nearly nine feet tall. “It’s about 110 horsepower tractor…We use it on the mixer mill at home all the time,” Klostermann said. “We just take a power washer and wash it off for taking it on the tractor ride and tomorrow it’ll be back grinding feed again.”

The annual Farm Toy celebration rolls through Dyersville. (Photo by KMCH’s Janelle Tucker)

Eighty-year-old Henry Joosten of Green Bay, Wisconsin, has been coming to Dyersville for the past 22 years to participate in the event, which includes a tractor ride through the countryside. “It’s the only way to see Iowa,” Joosten said. “It’s the only real way to see what God gave us to take care of. You can go on a car, on a motorcycle, but there’s nothing like seeing it on a tractor.”

The National Farm Toy Museum in Dyersville hosts the annual event, which started in 1987. The two-story museum features over 30-thousand toys, scale models and replicas of farm equipment.

(Lewis, Iowa) – Officials with Trees Forever say, “For you prairie and gardening types, this should interest you.” Cass County Conservation and Trees Forever are hosting an “Intro to Prairie and Plant ID” prairie walk on Thursday, June 12^th starting at 6:00 pm out at Cold Springs County Park. Cass County Naturalist Lora Kanning will lead the tour and you can even get your hands dirty helping with a small planting after.

More information on the Trees Forever website or the Cass County Conservation Board website and more field days are scheduled in Cass County for July 10^th, August 14^th and September 11^th so don’t miss out!

(Radio Iowa) – There’s a $10,000 reward for information that leads to the arrest of the person or people responsible for a week long fire at a northwest Iowa ethanol that caused significant damage. The fire at the POET facility in Emmetsburg started in the evening on May 12. Stacks of the corn stover used to make ethanol burned and POET estimates $5 million worth of the material was destroyed.

The Palo Alto County Sheriff’s Office and fire investigators say the fire is being “treated as an act of arson.” The general manager of the plant says it was “a serious criminal act that put people and property at risk.”

Cass County: Corn $4.11 Beans $10.13
Adair County: Corn $4.08 Beans $10.16
Adams County: Corn $4.08 Beans $10.12
Audubon County: Corn $4.10 Beans $10.15
East Pottawattamie County: Corn $4.14 Beans $10.13
Guthrie County: Corn $4.13 Beans $10.17
Montgomery County: Corn $4.13 Beans $10.15
Shelby County: Corn $4.14 Beans $10.13

Oats: $3.21 (same in all counties)

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Cass County Master Gardener group is excited to host walking tours of 3 private gardens in and around Anita on Sunday afternoon June 22. The garden walk will feature three unique garden spaces for participants to explore at their leisure and gain inspiration for their own gardens, while enjoying a variety of garden styles and designs. Gardens will be open for touring between 2-6 PM and may be visited in any order. Two gardens are located in town, while one is out in the country. Highlights from featured gardens included sun and shade gardens, container gardens, custom garden art, functional fruit and vegetable gardens, houseplants galore, annual plantings, perennial beds and more! Follow the Cass County Master Gardeners on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/CassCoMG for sneak peeks of featured garden spaces leading up to the day of the tour.

The walk is coordinated by the Cass County Master Gardeners, but is open to anyone interested in gaining some gardening inspiration. Educational materials will also be available at each stop for those wanting to grow their own gardening knowledge. Tickets for the walk are $10 each, with all proceeds going to support local Master Gardener projects and activities. Tickets are available now for purchase at the Cass County Extension office, and a registration form can also be found on the Cass County Extension website at https://www.extension.iastate.edu/cass. Tickets should be presented at each location for admission. A map of the tour locations and description of each garden is on each ticket purchased. Additional tickets may be purchased at any of the three locations on the day of the event. Garden locations will not be made public until the day before the event, when they will be posted on the Cass County Master Gardener Facebook page. They will be listed on tickets that are purchased in advance, but attendees are asked not to “pre-tour” the locations, so the gardeners have time to put on all the finishing touches to make their spaces tour-ready!

So mark your calendars, grab a walking buddy, and plan to join the Cass County Master Gardeners on Sunday afternoon, June 22, for memorable walk in the garden(s)! For information about other upcoming Master Gardener activities in Cass County, or to learn about becoming a Master Gardener, visit https://www.extension.iastate.edu/cass/master-gardener-program, call the Cass County Extension Office at 712-243-1132, or email Cass County Extension Director and Master Gardener Coordinator Kate Olson at keolson@iastate.edu. In addition, you are invited to follow the Cass County Master Gardeners at their Facebook page at www.facebook.com/CassCoMG to keep up with local events, garden previews, and tips for gardening throughout the year!

ATLANTIC, IA (June 8, 2025) – Produce in the Park is celebrating Wheels Day on Thursday, June 12 from 4:30 to 6:30 PM at the Atlantic City Park. This themed market features everything wheels—bike decorating, adult trike rides with the YMCA, and a free helmet giveaway (50 helmets available, first come, first served). Volunteers from Nishna Valley Trails will be on-site to air up tires and adjust seat heights, and the Atlantic Kiwanis will assist with helmet fittings and share information on their annual free helmet giveaway. The Atlantic Police Department will be talking bike safety, and the Atlantic Public
Library will be offering a free Library for All bicycle-themed art activity.

Produce in the Park Market Manager Ciara Hoegh shows off one of the free helmets being given away June 12

Three food trucks will be serving options for dinner in the park June 12. New food truck Karam’s Grill will offer a variety of Greek favorites, including gyros and fries. A-Town SmokeShack will offer their signature barbecue dishes, and Lucky Wife Wine Slushies will provide cool, refreshing slushie beverages for adults.

The June 12 market features more than 20 vendors selling local foods including early summer greens, radishes, and green onions, farm-fresh eggs, local meats (beef, lamb, pork, chicken), honey, sourdough bread, cookies, cupcakes, Danish kringle, and more. Shoppers will also find vendors with garden decorations and plants, crafts, and bath and body products including
soaps, body lotions, sugar scrubs, lip balms, lip scrubs, beard oils, and bath salts.

Market visitors will enjoy live music from Dr. Dave, playing classic rock from The Beatles to Elton John and Led Zeppelin, and Cass Health’s Clinical Dietitian, Sarah Andersen, will be serving as Guest Chef, sharing free samples of homemade ranch dressing that will pair well with early-season produce sold at the market.

Visiting organizations and sponsors sharing community information at the park June 12 include Cass County Tourism, Cass County Conservation, Atlantic Kiwanis, Nishna Valley Trails, Cass Health, Atlantic Police Department, Healthy Cass County, and the Atlantic Public Library. Admission to Produce in the Park is always free. The market accepts SNAP/EBT and Double Up Food Bucks for all qualifying food items.

Karam’s Grill food truck will be selling Greek food at Produce in the Park June 12

Wheels Day is made possible by generous support from June market sponsors Atlantic United Church of Christ, City of Atlantic, First Whitney Bank & Trust, Gregg Young Chevrolet of Atlantic, Cass Health, Cass County Tourism, Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce, and Nishna Valley Family YMCA.

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For the latest market updates, follow Produce in the Park on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ProduceInThePark and Instagram at www.instagram.com/produceintheparkatlanticia/. Vendor and sponsor applications remain open for the summer season. Interested sellers of handmade or homegrown products—including local foods, crafts, art, and plants—can apply online at www.ProduceInTheParkAtlanticIowa.com or pick up paper copies at the Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce (102 Chestnut St., Atlantic.

ANKENY — Iowa Farmers Union members met Saturday with U.S. Federal Trade Commissioner Alvaro Bedoya and explained how consolidation in the agriculture industry has crippled their farming operations and rural communities. The Iowa Capital Dispatch reports Bedoya, who visited with Iowa farmers three years prior, said it was important to come back to the places where “the scope of the problems that people are facing just hits you in the face.”

“The key question is: what is the undone work,” Bedoya said to the group gathered in a barn at Griffieon Farms outside of Ankeny. Bedoya is visiting with groups around the country while he is involved in a lawsuit against the Trump administration, which fired him from the FTC in March. During his time at FTC, Bedoya and his team sued over the business merger between grocery giants Kroger and Albertsons, sued pesticide companies for alleged anticompetitive practices and sued John Deere for the right to repair equipment.

After listening to farmers share their stories, Bedoya said “the scope of the problem” and the “just how many issues” are facing Iowa farmers is what stood out to him. Sean Dengler, a former farmer in Tama County, said the “monopolization” across the machinery and agricultural sector led him to give it up and end five generations of Dengler farming tradition. Last harvest season, an error code on his combine led to a several-days harvest delay waiting for a licensed technician to come out to the farm, diagnose and come back to repair the rig. “Giving farmers the ability to fix the equipment they bought is their right,” Dengler said.

Federal Trade Commissioner Alvaro Bedoya, right, speaks with Iowa Farmers Union President Aaron Lehman, center, and Josh Manske, left, at an event with IFU members in Ankeny June 7, 2025. (Photo by Cami Koons/Iowa Capital Dispatch)

Part of the problem, for repairs and for nearly every aspect related to farming, is that repair shops, dealers, grain elevators, meat lockers and other commodities are fewer and further between. Farmers gave countless examples Saturday of how this spread has hurt not just their ag operations, but their rural communities as well. Josh Manske, an IFU board member and farmer, said farmers no longer shop around for the best fertilizer price, instead they shop “for transportation.” Jerry Rosman, a farmer and truck driver, said he sees the same issue in the field, but also on the highway. “The dynamics of what it is might be a little different, but it’s just — as things get tighter at the top, at the bottom they just start disappearing,” Rosman said. “Pull through a little town and you can just see the decline.”

Mike Carberry, a board member for Iowa Farmers Union, said agriculture needs the FTC’s work “breaking up the monopolies” of the industry that, he said, have turned Iowa into an “extractive state.” Bedoya, who listened intently to the farmers, said while he’s committed to bringing this type of legal action forward, stopping a merger, as the FTC did with the Kroger and Albertsons case, takes a massive amount of time, people and money. “The amount of time it takes to stop a merger that has not yet happened is massive,” Bedoya said. “To undo a merger that has already happened is gargantuan — it is something that kind of happens once in a legal generation.”

Bedoya said a similar issue of vertical integration in the pharmaceutical industry has been blocked by legislative efforts in several states. Lawmakers in Iowa passed a bill that would put restrictions on pharmacy benefit managers to prevent them from using specific pharmacies to fill prescriptions. The bill has yet to be signed by Gov. Kim Reynolds. Bedoya, speaking on similar legislation passed in Arkansas, said it “opened up” an avenue for going after vertical integration, that could be an option to intervene in some of the consolidation issues in agriculture. “This is going to require both parties, and it’s going to require every level of government or every branch, not just, federal prosecutors, but state prosecutors, state legislators, and also federal legislators if they get their act together and pass some bills,” Bedoya said.

(Radio Iowa) – Iowa’s spring planting season is wrapping up, with the majority of corn and soybean fields statewide now fully planted. Angie Rieck Hinz, a field agronomist at the Iowa State University Extension, says weather conditions have been all over the map the past few months. “It was warm when we started and then it turned off a little wet, and then it turned off a little cool, and then it got really windy, and then it warmed up, and then it got cool again,” Rieck Hinz says. “It really was a lot of stress on those earlier planted crops.” Those temperature variations, she says, can really do a number on newly planted crops.

“We were waffling between warm in the 90-degree temperatures and then back in the upper 40s and lower 50s and that causes a lot of stress on those emerged plants,” she says, “but in this last week, with a little bit of rain and now some sun and heat, the corn and soybeans really seem to be exploding in growth.” Many parts of the state have seen healthy rains in recent days, though most areas still lack moisture and could use another inch or two. Plus, she says weeds could be starting to cause a problem.

“If you did an early post-application of herbicide, I would be scouting those fields again,” Rieck Hinz says. “We really struggled with our pre-emerged herbicides this year to work because it was so dry in some places. So it might be the year where we need two post applications of herbicide to keep those weeds down.”

The latest Iowa Drought Monitor map shows about 28-percent of the state has -no- sign of drought, with almost 60-percent of Iowa in the “abnormally dry” category, and about 13-percent considered in moderate drought.