w/Denny Heflin.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (3.3MB)

Subscribe: RSS

Many farmers are anxious to start planting, but an Iowa State University crops specialist says farmers may want to wait at least another week for some warmer weather so the soil can warm up. Joel DeJong works in northwest Iowa and says you need soil temperatures above 50 degrees, and while the air temperature rose a little this past weekend, temperatures then dropped off.”We’ve had average daily temperatures significantly lower than 50 degrees the last couple of days. So, we’re starting to see that temperature drop. In almost all cases up here it is lower than 50. We use 50 as that starting point. We want it to be 50 degrees and warmer, to really get going, because it takes 50 degrees temperature for that seed to really do much of anything,” DeJong says.

DeJong says there were some farmers who had planted their corn by this time last year, and for some it worked out well, while others encountered some problems. “Sometimes the old timers tell me that we need a good warm rain. We really haven’t had a good warm rain to warm things up either. So, that’s part  of the mix. The profile still remains fairly cool. It’s not awful though. We see lots of cases with today’s hybrids and today’s seed treatments, we can tolerate some cooler temperatures than we have historically,” DeJong says.

He says there was a lot of corn planted on the 11th and 12th of April last year, and most of that, particularly the western half of the area did pretty well. He says the research indicates April 15th through May 8th is a planting range where they’ll get from 98 to 100 percent of the typical yield if planting in good conditions.  “We can extend that range from 95 to 100 percent range. You never know what each year is going to bring? Some we can expand that range, others we need to shrink that range a little. But that’s kind of the general,” DeJong says. ” We have a nice window of opportunity. Most producers only take about five…six…seven days to plant. We have some larger producers that take more. So, we’re really early, and more than likely in this part of the state, we will get that window of opportunity in that ideal time period again.”

The Iowa State University Crops Specialist says sometimes if farmers till their ground during wet conditions, it could lead to soil compacting, and the bottom of the disk zone getting smeared. “We need to be a little cautious with that. If its too wet and we smear that gets hard and dries out and then we have  roots having trouble to penetrating that. So, we need to watch that zone a little bit too,” DeJong says.

The weekly crop report from the U-S-D-A released Monday show no planting yet in the state.

(Radio Iowa)

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A rule designed to protect the legal rights of farmers who grow chickens and hogs for the nation’s largest meat processors has been delayed by at least six months, halting an initiative rolled out in the final days of Barack Obama’s administration. The rule was first proposed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in 2010 but was finally rolled out in December and was set to take effect on April 22.

President Donald Trump’s administration announced the delay Wednesday to allow for more input. The rule would make it easier for farmers to sue companies they contract with over unfair or deceptive practices. Farmers who have waited years for the rule expressed disappointment. Poultry and pork industry trade groups say the rule will reduce competition and drive up meat prices.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Des Moines Water Works’ board has decided not to appeal the dismissal of the utility’s lawsuit against three counties. The lawsuit dismissed March 17 by a federal judge accused the counties of allowing agricultural drainage districts to send nitrate pollution into the rivers the utility uses for drinking water.

Water Works CEO Bill Stowe said in a news release after the board’s decision Tuesday that “central Iowa will continue to be burdened with expensive, serious and escalating water pollution problems.” The Des Moines Register reports that the board had originally agreed to spend $1.35 million to pursue the lawsuit.

Stowe says the board “views these resources would be better spent finding other avenues to pursue environmental protection rather than legal action, like trying to affect public policy through lobbying.”

Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley is reintroducing legislation that would ban packer ownership of livestock. Grassley, a Republican, says he’s seeing more consolidation and “vertical integration” in the livestock industry which will ultimately hurt farmers and consumers. “When four companies control 76% of all the slaughter, there’s not much competition,” Grassley says, “and particularly that competition is even lessened when farmers are up against these packers that own livestock and can butcher their own.”

In the past few decades, large poultry and pork packers have concentrated operations and Grassley says the beef industry is also showing signs of going the same direction.  “I want farmers to have as much competition as they can to get the highest price for the cattle,” Grassley says. “I think it’s compromised when cattle are owned by packers. They can manipulate the market easier. It shows up in lower prices for farmers.”

A report from the U-S-D-A says the amount of cattle traded on the cash market dropped from 52-percent in 2005 to 21-percent in 2015. Grassley says that trend shows how packers are gaining far too much power to control the marketplace. Grassley says, “You’ve heard me say, quoting some president of some company, ‘Why do we own livestock? Well, when prices are high, we kill our own. When prices are low, we buy from the farmer.'”

Grassley has offered packer ownership bans at least twice before in recent years and he’s hoping this Congress will be more receptive to his concerns.

(Radio Iowa)

Restoration work on the 100-year old barn at the Leet/Hassler Farmstead in Manning, has begun. “Save the Farm” efforts were announced this spring, and more than $10,000 has been raised towards the project. Kerkhoff Kraftsmen from Carroll, who have experience in renovating and repurposing old barns, started the work in mid-March. Electricity has been added to the hay loft, the floor has been repaired, and the south wall has been stabilized. They will sand the floor and clean the rafters and floor next. New steps will be added to the hay loft, which can then be used for dances, weddings, and photo opportunities. Estimated cost of this phase is $16,000.

LeRoy Dammann, who oversees the maintenance at the Heritage-Hausbarn Park, and Dr. Rexanne Struve, DVM, are in charge of the “Save the Farm” project. Additional funds will be needed for repairing the foundation on the scale house, replacing the roof on the Arts and Crafts Style Home, and working on other buildings on the property, which is on the National Register of Historic Places. The Park also includes the 1660s German Hausbarn and the 1913 Trinity Church.

The Heritage-Hausbarn Park will host a 100th birthday party for the Leet/Hassler Farmstead Saturday, May 13. Admission to the grounds will be free from 9 am – noon. Breakfast will be served from 9 – 10:30 am, with a free will offering. Old-time games, horse-drawn wagon rides, and other activities for the entire family will begin at 10 am.

When completed, the hay loft at the Leet/Hassler Farmstead will be available for barn dances, weddings, receptions, meetings, and as a unique photo site.

The U-S Army Corps of Engineers is holding a series of public meetings this week to offer updates on the planned operation of the Missouri River Mainstem Reservoir System. Corps spokeswoman Amy Gaskill says today’s (Tuesday) meeting is in Omaha/Council Bluffs and it’s open to all. Gaskill says, “Anybody who’s interested in learning more about our water operations and can provide input if they have information to help us operate the system differently, or with more information.”

The public meetings will include a presentation on current conditions in the river basin and the Corps’ plans for operating the reservoir system in the year ahead. There will also be time for questions. Gaskill says the system is ready for any possible flooding situation, though no flooding is anticipated on the Missouri this spring.

“We have a lot of space left in our storage in the reservoirs to handle the water that’s going to be coming down from the mountain snow melt, so we’re looking pretty good there,” Gaskill says. “A significant amount of the plains snowpack has already melted and been through the system, so we’re looking pretty good there as well.”

Gaskill says they’ll also provide updates on how the river is being monitored. “We manage the river and keep a close eye on it, working with our partners from the National Weather Service, from NOAA, making sure we can respond as soon as we can,” she says.

Today’s meeting is at 5 PM at the Western Historic Trails Center in Council Bluffs.

(Radio Iowa)

Poultry farmers in Iowa and across the Midwest continue to follow strict biosecurity practices as they try to prevent a repeat of 2015’s devastating avian influenza (AI) outbreak. Russ Yoder, who raises turkeys near Wayland in southeast Iowa, says biosecurity is a part of everything they do on the farm. “Disinfecting boots all the time, washing clothes, washing pickups and tires — it’s a never-ending battle,” Yoder says. “And when you go to town, you don’t wear your boots into the gas station, you don’t wear your boots into the feed mill, or anywhere. Then, when you get out to the farm, you change your boots and you disinfect. You’re only as strong as your weakest link and all it takes is once.”

Yoder, who serves as president of the Iowa Turkey Federation, was able to avoid the disease in his operation in 2015. But, this spring’s A-I outbreaks in the southeastern U.S. have him and other poultry farmers on high alert. Yoder says warmer weather would help alleviate some of those concerns. “A 48-degree, cold, damp day, they say AI can live up to 30 days in those environments. Where, you get an 85-degree, warm, sunny, dry day, it can live up to three hours,” Yoder says. “So, weather is a part of it. This time of the year is the big challenge. So, we just need to keep working on biosecurity.”

Except for one case of low pathogenic avian flu in a Wisconsin turkey flock last month, all of this spring’s outbreaks have been confined to broiler houses in the Southeast. Avian flu can be carried by wild birds as they migrate north. It is NOT a food safety issue for humans.

(Radio Iowa w/reporting by Ken Anderson, Brownfield Ag News)

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A small-town Iowa newspaper editorial writer has won the Pulitzer Prize for taking on powerful agricultural organizations after a water utility sued the paper’s home county and two others over farm pollution. Art Cullen, who owns the Storm Lake Times with his brother John, says his editorials were about government transparency.

The counties sued by the Des Moines Water Works secretly received money from agricultural groups to fight the lawsuit and the 3,000-circulation twice-weekly newspaper pushed in its reporting to lift the veil of secrecy on who was paying to fight the lawsuit.

The 59-year-old Cullen says he feels vindicated the information was released and he’s proud of the Pulitzer, which recognized him for “tenacious reporting, impressive expertise and engaging writing that successfully challenged powerful corporate agricultural interests in Iowa.”

Dolly Bergmann of Atlantic was recently honored as an Outstanding Volunteer by the Iowa Urban Tree Council. The presentation was made Thursday, April 6 at the 27th Annual Urban Forestry Awards Luncheon in Des Moines.

Bergmann has been a part of the Atlantic Trees Forever since 1999 and is currently serving as president. She has raised $156,000 for trees through grants and donations, translating to approximately 3,900 trees planted in the Atlantic community. The trees are planted throughout Atlantic — at entry signs, the hospital, assisted living facilities,the high school and middle school, the YMCA, the fairgrounds, parks, cemetery and in many city and highway rights of way.

Paul Tauke, State Forester (left) and Heath Ellis, President of the Iowa Urban Tree Council (right)

In addition to writing grants, Bergmann has applied for the Tree City Award every year on behalf of Atlantic. She organizes and leads Arbor Day events with the Atlantic School District, planting a tree with the local 4th graders every year for the past decade. Each year she provides an educational program, teaching the importance of properly planting and maintaining newly planted trees.

“Dolly Bergmann is an outstanding example of Iowa’s community forestry volunteers,” said State Forester Paul Tauke. “Her volunteer efforts will enhance our forest resources and benefit Atlantic for future generations.”