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CLICK HERE for the latest market quotes from the Iowa Agribusiness Network!
CLICK HERE for the latest market quotes from the Brownfield Ag News Network!
(Radio Iowa) – Some county fairs in Iowa have canceled this year’s events due to COVID-19, while others are still on, but in a reduced fashion. In Page County, the Fair Board has canceled everything except for 4-H and F-F-A events at next month’s fair in Clarinda. Page County Youth Coordinator Lexy Davies says it was a difficult decision, but one they are comfortable with. “I’m really proud of the Page County Fair Board and Page County Extension council,” Davies says. “Everybody has been able to work together and come up with a really good plan for our 4Hers and FFA exhibitors.”
Davies says they’re still giving 4-Hers and F-F-A members an opportunity to show their projects and animals at the fair, which was the number-one priority when it came to decision making.
“We know our 4H and FFA members work really hard,” Davies says. “They spend a lot of time working on projects and livestock. They deserve not only the chance to show off their talent and hard work, but to be recognized for what they have done.”
The first event of the fair will be the static livestock judging on July 21st. The swine shows will take place on July 22nd. Horse, sheep and goat shows will be July 23rd followed by poultry and rabbit showings on July 24th. The beef and pet shows will be on July 26th.
(Radio Iowa) — Warm weather that’s good for the crops is expected to return for the rest of the week after rain cooled things off. National Weather Service Meteorologist, Cory Martin, says it won’t be anything too overbearing for now. He says we are looking at high temperatures in upper 70’s to low 80’s and then next week back into the upper 80’s with a return of the humidity. Martin says the humidity will let us know next week that we are moving into July. And he says the crops will add to the mugginess. “We get into July and the corn starts feeding into that humidity as well,” Martin says.
The corn planting finished ahead of the last several years and the new crop report out Monday shows it is doing well with 85 percent rated in good to excellent condition. The soybeans are following right along with 96 percent emerged — which is 16 days ahead of last year and one week ahead of the five-year average. Soybean condition rated 84 percent good to excellent.
(Radio Iowa) — The Iowa D-N-R is offering a course again this year designed to teach all you need to know about hunting deer from start to finish. The D-N-R’s Jaime Cook oversees the “Field to Fork” program. “It’s a program designed for adults who have very little or no hunting experience to get a chance to get out and try it in the field,” he explains. You are taught how to use a compound bow to hunt deer and are also taught how to dress the deer and prepare the meat to put in your freezer. Cook says the shows on T-V make it seem like a simple thing to do. “Looks can be very deceiving, you can watch a ten-minute YouTube video and feel like you are ready to take it on,” Cook says. “I am relatively new to deer hunting myself — just been hunting about five years — you know it’s tiresome by the time you get your animal down, you find it you trail it and then you start to field dress it.”
He says the course takes you through the whole process with experts. “As we approach the fall they are going to have some study at-home lessons, we’ll be providing some printed material as well as some online video supplements,” according to Cook. “They’ll all need to make sure they have hunter education requirements satisfied her in the state as well. We’ll have some online zoom meetings or video chats to have some Q&A as well.” The D-N-R will also provide some in-person instruction in how to best prepare the venison for storage and eating. “We will have someone on hand that will walk them through how to field dress, how to butcher, how to prepare their meet for freezer storage, and then we are going to be working with a local chef,” Cook says.
He says the idea is to get more people into hunting and also fill the need for those who want to bring home their own meat. “Quite the freezer filler I should say in terms of being able to go out and do it yourself. And that’s also a bit thing, people are really concerned about where their meat comes from these days and they want to have an active part in procuring it and bringing it home,” Cook says. The Ames classes for the Field to Fork program have already filled, but they are accepting applications for Waterloo classes.
The program is limited to ten people at each site, and you can learn more details online or fill out an application at IowaDNR.gov.
SHELBY, IA – The Board of Directors of Carstens 1880 Farmstead has decided to postpone Farm Days this year until September 11 & 12, 2021. This is due to COVID-19 safety considerations. “We looked at a lot of things before we decided to postpone the show,” said Carstens Board President, Mel Hursey of Shelby. “We know that the Farm Days Show brings folks from all over and we decided to keep things as safe as we could by postponing.”
The Board met last week and considered what the two-day event’s postponement means to the community. The difficult decision about postponing Kids Day was also made. “We want to keep the health and safety of our youngest and oldest visitors and volunteers to the farm a priority.”
“One part of Farm Days that people like will happen this year,” added Hursey. The Staley’s Chicken Dinner will still be held at the farm on Saturday, September 12, 2020. It will begin at 5:30 pm. Public Health guidance will be followed to assure social distancing is available. “Tables will be added so there will be more room for the crowd,” Hursey said. This dinner typically draws over 300 as they enjoy the meal and community spirit of the Farm Days Show.
“Be sure to check for COVID-19 updates and the farm on our web site,” Hursey said. As Public Health information is updated Carstens Board members will adjust plans as needed. “As we look forward in these times, we thank the community, the exhibitors and volunteers for the continuing support of Carstens 1880 Farmstead.”
(Radio Iowa) — There’s still no word from the U-S-D-A on requests from Iowa leaders to help the state’s turkey producers recover from serious production problems caused by COVID-19. Iowa Turkey Federation executive director Gretta Irwin says the pandemic brought a sharp drop in sales and created a backlog of turkeys to be processed. “Iowa’s turkey farmers were impacted by the COVID virus by decreased sales in restaurants,” Irwin says. “As people locked down for those three-plus months and did not go out and eat at a lot of quick-serve restaurants that serve a lot of turkey deli meats, we saw those sales go down.”
Many Iowa restaurants closed or saw a significant drop-off in customers as they shifted to carry-out or delivery only during the height of the pandemic. “That has obviously created an excess inventory in the processors’ warehouses,” Irwin says, “and then that is going to now adversely affect the turkey farmers as they look to cut back production to try to work through that excessive inventory.” Irwin says federal funding is critically needed for the state’s turkey producers as well as for the processors that were hit hard by the pandemic.
“We’re asking for some support for those farmers who are going to be asked to not produce turkeys because of this excess inventory,” Irwin says. “For the processing plants, we are taking advantage of a lot of the other food assistance programs that the government is providing to food banks and to school food service programs.”
Both of Iowa’s U-S senators and the state’s agricultural leaders have asked the U-S-D-A for assistance for turkey producers. In their letter, they asked that agency economists work to devise a formula that allows this niche sector of the nation’s poultry industry to get the help it needs. Iowa is the nation’s seventh-largest turkey producer and ranks fifth in turkey processing.
(Radio Iowa) — Quad Cities-based John Deere is restructuring and implementing a new operating model. Spokeswoman Jen Hartmann says it’s been eleven years since the last “global” restructuring. The new model is called the Deere Smart Industrial strategy. “The new org model is making sure — and this is really at that corporate-level– looking at how we can structure ourselves to be much quicker to market, much more responsive to what customer needs are, and to deliver on those needs very efficiently and quickly,” Hartmann explains.
For the Agriculture and Turf Division, Hartmann says Deere teams will use different approaches to serving customers with large-scale farms in North and South America, plus Australia, compared to mid-size and small growers and producers around the world. “Whether we are talking about the equipment or technology — what do those corn and soy farmers need most, because that is going to be very different than what a dairy or livestock producer might need,” according to Hartmann, “And certainly very different from what a guy who’s producing oranges in an orchard. So this is going to be looking at that entire lifecycle of the needs of that farmer or producer or rancher.”
The restructuring includes expanding the role of the John Deere Intelligent Solutions Group, since, Hartmann says, technology is the key to improving customer service before, during, and after the sale. They have a chief technology officer Jamie Hindman who she says will be overseeing the intelligent solutions group and the entire technical staff.
She says the intelligent solutions group had been focused on precision agriculture, but all of the tech and support will now be focused on the entire lifecycle of the product lines from construction and forestry to ag and turf. Deere plans to invest in research and development of new technologies. Hartmann says the company’s “smart, connected” machines will help customers save money, increase productivity, and ultimately make more money.
DES MOINES– Governor Kim Reynolds, today (Thursday), signed an Executive Order establishing the Governor’s Economic Recovery Advisory Board. Among those she selected was Nick Bowdish, President & CEO of Elite Octane, with a plant located in Atlantic.
The advisory board will be led by Ben McLean, CEO of Ruan Transportation Management Systems and it will focus on modernizing Iowa’s economy as well as education, health care, workforce and quality of life.
“Iowa’s success has always been about turning obstacles into opportunities,” said Gov. Reynolds. “The Governor’s Economic Recovery Advisory Board assembles an impressive group of business leaders to propel our recovery efforts forward and position Iowa for growth. Iowans will be at the center of this effort as we continue to make our state the best place to live, work and raise a family. I want to thank Ben McLean, CEO of Ruan Transportation for his willingness to serve as the chair and appreciate all those serving on this advisory board.”
“I look forward to getting to work as soon as possible with the incredibly capable and talented group of leaders that will serve on the Governor’s Economic Recovery Advisory Board,” said Ben McLean, CEO of Ruan Transportation Management Systems and Chair of the Governor’s Economic Recovery Advisory Board. “This is about the future and taking an incredibly difficult situation and using it as an opportunity to make Iowa an even better place to live, work, and raise a family.”
The governor’s full remarks from today’s press conference can be viewed here.
Initial members of the Governor’s Executive Advisory Board are:
The signed executive order can be found here.
AMES, Iowa — The cool, rainy weather in recent weeks has aided the establishment of newly planted annuals, vegetables, perennials, trees and shrubs. The cool, rainy weather also has been favorable for the development of foliar diseases on some trees.
In this week’s yard and garden article, Richard Jauron, horticulture program specialist with Iowa State University Extension and Outreach, offers some tips.
For more information, contact ISU Extension and Outreach horticulture specialists at hortline@iastate.edu.
The leaf drop is likely due to anthracnose. Anthracnose is a common fungal disease of sycamore, ash, maple, oak and other trees. Anthracnose is most severe in years with cool, wet spring weather. While anthracnose may cause extensive defoliation, it does not cause serious harm to healthy, well-established trees.
Symptoms of anthracnose on sycamores include brown blotches on leaves, death of young buds and shoots, and leaf drop. In cool, wet springs, affected sycamores may lose most of their initial foliage.
Fortunately, the sycamore trees will continue to produce additional leaves and shoots through early summer. Foliage that develops in late spring and early summer should not become infected as warmer, drier weather suppresses anthracnose. Most sycamores should have a good canopy of leaves by late June or early July.
Since anthracnose does not cause serious harm to sycamores, fungicide treatments are rarely warranted.
The leaf drop is probably due to apple scab. Apple scab is a disease caused by the fungus Venturia inaequalis. Cool, wet weather in spring favors apple scab development. Crabapple cultivars differ in their susceptibility to apple scab. Some cultivars are very susceptible to the disease, while others are resistant to apple scab.
Apple scab appears as velvety, olive-green to black spots on crabapple leaves. Heavily infected leaves turn yellow and fall from the tree. Highly susceptible crabapple cultivars may lose a large percentage of their leaves by mid-summer. Fortunately, apple scab does not kill affected trees. The damage is mainly aesthetic.
Sanitation plays a role in controlling apple scab. Raking and destroying the leaves as soon as they fall may help reduce the severity of the infection next season. Apple scab can be prevented by applying fungicides from bud break through mid-June. For most home gardeners, however, controlling apple scab with fungicides is laborious and not practical. The best way to prevent apple scab is to select and plant scab-resistant crabapple cultivars.
(Radio Iowa) — The 2020 Farm Progress Show will go on in Boone from September 1st through the 3rd, with a few modifications due to the pandemic. The annual outdoor event alternates between Boone and Decatur, Illinois. It regularly attracts up to 150-thousand visitors. Farm Progress Show organizers say while state fairs have canceled due to the loss of money-making attractions, the Farm Progress show is a business event that gives farmers a chance to see equipment up close.
According to a news release, there will be accommodations due to the pandemic like hand sanitizer stations, plus streets set up on the field in Boone will be one-way, for better physical distancing. There’s no mention of staggered or limited admission, but there is a reference to new “All Secure” standards which suggest face masks may be recommended and handshakes discouraged.
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