Jim Field shares some of the most recent information about drought conditions in the area.

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(Radio Iowa) – As we approach harvest time, new concerns are rising about Iowa’s worsening drought conditions. A statewide virtual meeting is planned for next week to help address those concerns and to survey options. Field agronomist Rebecca Vittetoe, with the Iowa State University Extension, says the online meeting is free for anyone to join. Vittetoe says, “It’s designed for crop farmers and livestock producers, as well as ag retailers, farm managers, ag lenders or anybody in general that is impacted by the drought conditions and would like to know more.” Multiple speakers are lined up to discuss a list of farmers’ worries, and there will be opportunities for anyone watching to use the chat window to ask questions.

“One of the big things at this stage is on the livestock side, thinking about how we’re going to be managing the livestock with the drought, and then also thinking about feeding, drought stress crops and forages,” Vittetoe says. “One of the big questions that we always get in a drought is nitrate concerns especially for chopping for silage.” There could be health concerns for livestock as there can be higher nitrate levels in lower portions of the corn stalk. There will be several field agronomists in the virtual meeting, along with beef specialists, a farm management specialist, and representatives from the Farm Service Agency.

Drought-stressed corn. (ISU Exstension photo)

“On the farm management side of things, it’s more so thinking about crop insurance,” Vittetoe says. “Then also there’s some different government programs available as well for producers, depending upon what level of drought that we’re in. Usually once we reach that D-2 drought, certain programs become available to producers.” Roughly 16 Iowa counties are in at least D-2 or severe drought, while parts of five counties are in D-3 or extreme drought. The meeting is scheduled for noon on Tuesday (August 23) and should last around 90 minutes.

No pre-registration is required. To join the meeting, visit: https://www.aep.iastate.edu/drought/view

• 2 lbs. ground beef
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 lb. sliced fresh mushrooms
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 cans (10.75 oz.) condensed cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 lb. frozen cut green beans
• 1 bag (32 oz.) frozen tater tots
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

In a large skillet, cook beef over medium-high heat until no longer pink, 5-6 minutes, breaking into crumbles; drain and transfer to a 5 quart slow cooker.  Add the onions and mushrooms to skillet; cook over medium-high heat until the vegetables are tender, 8-10 minutes.  Add garlic, cook one minute longer.  Stir in condensed soup, salt and pepper.  Place vegetable mixture in slow cooker; add the green beans and stir to combine.  Top with tater tots and cheese.

Cook, covered, on low for 6-8 hours.  Let stand, uncovered, 15 minutes before serving.

TIP:  use frozen mixed vegetables in place of green beans to add color.

YIELD:  12 servings

(Radio Iowa) – Despite widespread rainfall earlier this week, drought conditions are worsening across Iowa, according to the new map out today (Thursday) from the U-S Drought Monitor. Field agronomist Rebecca Vittetoe, with the Iowa State University Extension, says the new red spots on the map are particularly troubling. “It just got updated again this morning based off of rainfall as of Tuesday morning of this week,” Vittetoe says, “so, not necessarily major changes on the Drought Monitor but parts of western Iowa, there’s a few more areas that are in the D-3 or that extreme drought compared to last week.”

Extreme drought is now shown in five western counties: Cherokee, Monona, Plymouth, Sioux and Woodbury, while statewide, 67 counties are now in some form of drought, up from 64 counties last week. Vittetoe is based in southeast Iowa’s Washington County, which is listed as both abnormally dry and in moderate drought, and she’s encouraged by crop conditions as harvest season nears. “It’s amazing what the plant breeders have been able to do to help crops better withstand drought,” Vittetoe says. “I look at some fields that have had less than five inches of rainfall this growing season and I’m impressed with how well they look, considering the little rainfall that we have had.”

She says Iowa’s two biggest crops are suffering fairly equally in the drought. “On the corn side, that pollination and grain fill is a really critical period when we don’t want to be having a lot of drought stress. We want to have plenty of moisture, cooler temperatures, to really help with pollination and with grain fill,” Vittetoe says. “On the soybean side, if we’re hot and dry in July, when that corn’s pollinating, I’m not as concerned then as when we get into August and we’re trying to work on putting on pods, filling pods.”

Vittetoe will be hosting a statewide virtual meeting next on the drought from the fall harvest perspective. For details, visit: https://www.aep.iastate.edu/drought/view

(Radio Iowa) – Iowans are familiar with the emerald ash borer and the green insect’s threat to our foliage, but we’re also being asked to be on guard for another insect that’s equally as lethal to a much wider variety of trees. Rhonda Santos, a spokeswoman for the U-S-D-A, says Iowa homeowners should examine their trees for the Asian longhorned beetle and report any clues they find about the invasive pest.

“Now is the best time to look for and report the signs of the Asian longhorned beetle in your backyard and in your neighborhood,” Santos says. “This wood-boring beetle attacks many types of trees and is a threat to our shade trees, recreational areas and our forest resources.” Unlike the emerald ash borer, the Asian longhorned beetle likes to feed on a host of trees, including: ash, birch, elm, sycamore, maple, buckeye, poplar and willow. The bug has distinct markings and leaves behind a series of holes and other signs in trees that make it quick to identify.

Asian Longhorned Beetle (USDA photo)

“The beetle is easy to recognize with their black and white antennae, shiny black body with white spots, and six legs,” Santos says. “The beetles create round holes and scars in the tree bark, sawdust-like material around the tree, and can cause branches to fall.” The beetle is not native to the U.S. and has few-to-no natural predators. Santos encourages Iowans to take five minutes and give your trees a close inspection for those round holes or sawdust.

Santos says, “If you see these signs, take photos and capture the suspicious insects to help the USDA with identification.” The beetle was first spotted in the U.S. in New York in 1996 and spread quickly. It’s one of a group of invasive pests and plant diseases that costs the nation some 40-billion dollars each year in losses to trees, plants, and crops. For more information or to report the insect or tree damage, visit www.asianlonghornedbeetle.com.

(Radio Iowa) – Tyson Foods is operating a new feed mill in northwest Iowa. It’s a replacement feed mill and adds 69 acres to Tyson’s turkey complex in Storm Lake. Nearly six dozen farmers within a 60 mile radius of the community supply the majority of turkeys processed at the company’s Storm Lake plant. Joe Hedden, Tyson’s Associate Director of Live Operations in Storm Lake, says the mill is providing high-quality feed for the turkeys.

“It gives us some great opportunities to help with the bird quality and animal welfare,” Hedden says, “and overall, all around it was a great decision.” The company’s turkey plant is operating at full capacity. “We’ve got three full shifts,” Hedden says. “It’s just the best thing that we’ve done is to open up a new feed mill here.”

Tyson feed mill in Storm Lake. (KAYL photo)

Tyson also operates a pork processing facility in Storm Lake and about 3000 people are employed at the company’s pork and turkey plants in Storm Lake. Tyson held an official opening for the towering feed mill today, but it’s been operating for several months.

The most recent data available indicates Iowa has more than 400 mills that grind grain and soybeans into specialized feed for livestock and poultry.

(Des Moines, Iowa) – A teen from Atlantic showed the Champion Shorthorn Breeding Heifer, Tuesday, at the Iowa State Fair. Colton Becker showed another Breeding Shorthorn Heifer earning a second-place finish in his class. Colton is the son of John and Abby Becker.

Photo: Mike Plagman, Eric Plagman, John Becker, Abby Becker, and Showman Colton Becker.

Jim Field reviews the latest updated Cass County Urgent Need Resource Guide.

Print a copy of the guide here >>>>> August 2022 Cass County Urgent Need Resource Guide

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w/Kate Olson.

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(Radio Iowa) – The Democratic Party’s nominee for state ag secretary says the Iowa Department of Agriculture needs to represent both producers and consumers. “We have to have an eye on the world and where the world is going and maybe think about the secretary of agriculture as the secretary of food, land and water.” John Norwood is a business consultant and currently serving as a Soil and Water Commissioner in Polk County.

Norwood says Iowa’s ag industry is tremendously productive, but there’s an imbalance and the state’s voluntary approach to reducing farm chemical run-off isn’t working. “We send a billion pounds of nitrates down our Mississippi and Missouri River systems and into our reservoirs like Saylorville Lake here and that creates major drinking water issues, water recreation issues, access to water issues,” Norwood says. “Over half of our state waters are impaired.”

Norwood’s first job out of college was at the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority which handled drinking water and wastewater. Norwood has not proposed specific limits on nitrogen and phosphorus application on cropland. He says innovative thinking is needed to improve Iowa’s water quality AND reduce top soil loss. “We have among the richest soils in the world here in Iowa and in some cases we’ve lost a third of the top soil, ten times the rate of loss that we make in any particular year,” Norwood says. “That’s unsustainable.”

Norwood says if Iowa is to weather more frequent floods and droughts, it needs healthy soil — and more acres planted with cover crops like oats, barley, rye and hay. “That might mean bringing more livestock, outdoor livestock which are important to soil health,” Norwood says. Norwood says Iowa needs to dedicate more ag land to crops that aren’t corn and soybeans. “We should be thinking about how do we feed 3.2 million Iowans and the 80 million people who live within a day’s drive Iowa,” Norwood says, “because places like California, which supply more than half of our fruits and vegetables is facing…drought.”

Norwood worked with cattle ranchers, nut growers and other farmers in California before settling in Iowa in 2002. Norwood made his comments on the Des Moines Register’s Political Soapbox at the Iowa State Fair. Current Iowa Ag Secretary Mike Naig (NEGG, rhymes with “egg”), a Republican, has been in office since the spring of 2018 and in this year’s election he’s seeking a second full term.