(Radio Iowa) — The tropical temperatures are hard on people — but they are good for the corn crop. It’s been a week of catching up on the growing front after a wet spring put corn planting about two weeks behind. I-S-U Extension field specialist Rebecca Vittetoe says the heat will help — but not all the corn will hit the mark in the old adage: “knee-high by the Fourth of July.” She says some of the earlier planted corn will make it — but the later planted corn will be lucky to be knee-high. Vittetoe covers Benton, Linn, Jones, Poweshiek, Iowa, Johnson, Marion, Mahaska, Keokuk and Washington counties in east-central Iowa. The corn height is measured by the amount of vegetative growth or leaf collars as it extends upward, starting with V-1.

“This week we’ve really seen the crops move along, you can almost see them grow with the heat we’ve been having,” Vittetoe says. “Corn, it probably ranges anywhere from V-2 or V-3 with the later planted corn. To probably, some of that corn is probably V-11, V-12.” The corn can grow to the V-19 or V-20 stage before it tassels out and starts the process of developing the ears. Vittetoe says she doesn’t like being out in this heat, but likes what it does to the corn. “The heat will definitely help it grow. And if we’re going to have hotter temperatures I’d like it — especially on the corn side right now. I don’t want it when the corn is going to be pollinating and tassling and forming that ear,” Vittetoe says. “Having the heat now is going to help push it along and once we reach tassel and grain fill, I’d like it to cool off so we can have a longer grain-fill period.”

The corn is normally ready to start the tassling phase around mid-July, but she says that could be the end of July or early August this year. Vittetoe has talked with her colleagues and is hearing there’s a large variance across the state in corn development. “Some cases, I know like northern Iowa, especially northwest Iowa, they had really delayed planting. Other parts of the state, like southwest Iowa were not as delayed,” according to Vittetoe. “It does vary, and even varies within the county too, depending on who got the rain and if if was river bottom too,” she says. Getting the seed in the ground helps ease some of the concern for farmers. “Earlier in May there was definitely a lot of anxiousness. You could sense the stress just talking to people,” Vittetoe says. “You can still feel some of that anxiousness….it hasn’t been an easy growing season by any means. It’ doesn’t seem quite as much, you don’t feel it quite as much — but it’s still there.”

The last U-S-D-A crop report listed 62 percent of the corn crop in good to excellent condition. Sixty-three percent of the beans were rated in good to excellent condition. The next report is due out Monday.

WEST UNION, Iowa (AP) — A northeastern Iowa man has been arrested for having no license and driving to a court hearing — on his tractor. Television station KCRG reports that 54-year-old Jeffery Johanningmeier, of Wadena, was stopped Wednesday by deputies when he pulled up to the Fayette County Courthouse on his John Deere tractor.

Deputies say he had made the nearly 15-mile trip for a court appearance, but did not have a valid driver’s license, which has been suspended for nonpayment of child support. Johanningmeier was arrested and later released.

DAVENPORT, Iowa (AP) — The Army Corps of Engineers has partially opened the Mississippi River to barge traffic, but farmers in Iowa are still worried about the financial impact of the slow recovery of shipping on the waterway. Dozens of barges have been at a standstill during this devastating flood season .

Robb Ewoldt tells the Quad-City Times that he has around $80,000 worth of soybeans in storage at his farm in Scott County, waiting to be shipped down the river. The halt to barge traffic is delaying farmers’ income and has prevented some from planting crops because fertilizer arrives by barge.

Doug Weber, a manager at shipping company Alter River Terminal Rock Island, says they usually ship one or two barges per day. But only a dozen barges have moved since traffic closed mid-March.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — A retired Iowa farmer who applied to Gov. Kim Reynolds to have his gun rights restored has instead been charged with illegally possessing firearms. Allan Phillips of West Branch had been out of trouble for 40 years when he sent in his application seeking restoration. He wrote that it was time to “clear my name” on a 1978 misdemeanor conviction for having a loaded hunting gun in his car.

Phillips, 76, received a surprise visit in February from agents who were conducting a background check as part of the process. They found that he had firearms in violation of the gun ban that his 41-year-old conviction triggered. They charged Phillips with being a felon in possession of a firearm. He has pleaded not guilty and is awaiting trial.

The case illustrates how hard it can be for ex-offenders to get their gun rights back once they are lost. A recent report shows Reynolds didn’t restore anyone’s gun rights during her first 19 months in office.

• KJAN, Atlantic  .18″
• Massena  1.07″
• Anita  .41″
• Bridgewater  1.6″
• Villisca  .1″
• Corning  .24″
• Oakland  .2″
• Creston  .93″
• Red Oak  .13″

w/Kate Olson.

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(Radio Iowa) — The Iowa Farm Bureau is hosting an economic summit on Friday in Des Moines under the heading, “Managing Through Challenging Times.” Iowa Farm Bureau president Craig Hill says it’s been a tough couple of years for farmers and ranchers and this event will offer them help on several fronts. “We’ll bring in some experts and folks that have knowledge and wisdom about forecasting and what’s going to be happening in the future,” Hill says. “We’ll deal with macroeconomic issues as well as farm lending and what farmers’ balance sheets and current positions look like as well as going forward with trade.”

Hill says summit attendees will be able to learn more about how the Farm Bill is being implemented. “The Farm Service Agency director from Washington D.C. will be joining us to give us some insight there,” Hill says. “There’s just a whole host of people that have knowledge and beyond, talking about technology, too, and how we manage in a changing world, in a challenging world, with technology.”

A delegation of Iowa farmers recently visited one of the countries at the center of trade disputes with the Trump Administration. Hill says, “We had a market study tour to China and the insight they gained and the experiences they had while traveling in China and learning about their agriculture and their needs going forward and the trade discussion is going to be very interesting to hear.”

He says it’s also a chance to share information about new revenue opportunities stemming from hemp, crop insurance, and blockchain technology. Registrations for the summit are still being accepted at the website: www.iowafarmbureau.com.

CRYSTAL LAKE, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa Department of Natural Resources says zebra mussels have been found in Crystal Lake in north-central Iowa. The invasive species are native to eastern Europe and are voracious eaters that gobble up plankton many native freshwater fish need to survive. The mussels can attach themselves to boat motors, bait buckets and dam mechanisms and cause damage to motors and facilities.

The Iowa department says juvenile versions of the small black and white species were discovered in a recent water sample. No adult zebra mussels were found in a follow-up survey. Officials say the mussels probably arrived on or in a boat that had been in an infested water body, such as nearby Clear Lake.

Boaters are urged to clean, drain and dry watercraft to prevent the spread.

(Radio Iowa) — The Iowa State Fair is a little more than one month away and administrators are now looking for people to fill paid and volunteer positions. Spokesperson Mindy Williamson says there are lots of opportunities in both areas. “We have about 16-hundred employees who come help us during the fair — and even more volunteers. So, we are looking to fill some of those employment opportunities and also our volunteers,” Williamson says.

Volunteers do a variety of things, from working at the “Little Hands on the Farm” exhibit, selling souvenirs for the Blue Ribbon Foundation, and getting everyone on the right track at the information booths. “So, if you love the fair or you know a lot about the fair, this is a perfect spot for you to come,” Williamson says. “And our volunteer program this year celebrates 25 years. So, we have some people some people in those information booths on our grounds who have been doing it for 25 years.”

You can go online to find out how to sign up. “There are individual contacts that they can reach out to — but the one place that you can go to to find all that information is on our website at Iowa-State-Fair-dot-org. You can go there and look up volunteer opportunities,” Williamson explains. You can also stop by the administration building and fill out an application. She says the benefits include free fair admission, work experience and meeting a lot of new people. “You’ll get to meet a ton of Iowans and people outside of Iowa,” according to Williamson, “and we couldn’t do it without our volunteers and were are so very thankful to the folks who do volunteer. And if you are looking to volunteer we want to welcome you to have the opportunity to come out here and have some fun and meet some great people.”

This year’s Iowa State Fair is August 8th through the 18th.

BELLEVUE, Iowa (AP) — Officials say low-flying planes will release a substance Wednesday in an effort to stop the spread of invasive gypsy moths in eastern Iowa’s Jackson County. The planes will release what agricultural officials say is a “mating disruptor” that’s made of food-grade materials and is not harmful to people, animals, birds, plants or other insects. The spraying is scheduled for more than 10,000 acres on Wednesday, west and northwest of Bellevue.

The gypsy moth has spread slowly west from Massachusetts since the 1870s. It’s an invasive species that can cause extensive deforestation as its larvae eat leaves, particularly oak leaves.
More information is available online or from the Iowa Gypsy Moth Hotline at 855-497-7966.