w/Kate Olson.

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Iowa is on track to have its quietest severe weather season in history. Senior meteorologist Brad Small, at the National Weather Service in Johnston, says their office covers 51 counties across western and central Iowa and practically the only time the warning sirens have wailed this year has been during the monthly tests.

All three warnings issued were for severe thunderstorms. By comparison, the busiest year for severe weather was 2001, a year in which there had already been more than 200 warnings by this date. Small says the last time a tornado warning was issued by his office was in July of last year. Eastern Iowa has seen two relatively small tornadoes this year so far, but ordinarily there would’ve already been at least a dozen statewide. Iowa saw a total of 28 tornadoes touch down last year, which is well below the average number of around 50. As for this year, Small says conditions simply haven’t been conducive for strong storms.

Small assures he’s not tempting fate by calling attention to this being such a quiet season, as virtually nobody is itching for a tornado to spin out of black clouds on the horizon.

The forecast does call for the possibility of warmer weather and thunderstorms later this week, but Small says overall, the chances for severe weather threats remain low.

Iowa’s largest manufacturing employer is being recognized for the success of its farming education program in Nigeria. Quad Cities-based John Deere partnered with a non-profit and local farmers on the Rayuwa (RAY-oh-wuh) project last year, which aims to teach Nigerian farmers better agricultural techniques. Out of more than four-thousand applicants, Fast Company magazine has named Deere the winner of its 2021 award for World Changing Ideas, which stunned Nate Clark, president of the John Deere Foundation.

“We’re still pinching ourselves about it,” Clark says. “It’s powerful confirmation that when people look at opportunities or activities that can change the world, that they realize that farmers play an important part in making the world a better place.” Rayuwa means “life” or “livelihood” in the Hausa (HOUSE-ah) language and according to data from its inaugural year, the project is living up to its name. Nigeria experienced a 10-percent decrease in food scarcity during the summer of 2020 — a time of the year known as “hunger season.” Lekan Tobe (LAY-con TOE-bay) oversees the Rayuwa project and says the program weathered the pandemic because he hired team members from the 11 target villages.

“Most of the guys are actually in the village, some right in the community, some 5-10 minutes from the village,” Tobe says. Three months before harvest season, farmers in the region run low on food, and a lack of steady income depletes their savings. But despite a global pandemic and growing poverty in Nigeria, these farmers produced more and earned more — about one-point-three million dollars more. While the program started with 2,500 veteran farmers and 4,000 newcomers, Tobe says the total number of participating farmers in the region now tops 8,000. This year, the Rayuwa project hopes to expand from 11 villages to 21.

The City of Atlantic’s Parks and Recreation Department Board of Directors is set to meet 5:15-p.m. Monday, at City Hall. Discussion/Action items and/or New Business on their agenda include:

• Sunnyside Bathrooms
• Summer Programs
• Street Dept. take over of the campground
• Summer Help
• Sunnyside Pool
• Plastic Bags to Benches
• and, Walkability Maps.

Parks Director Bryant Rasmussen will update the Board on the following:

• Nesting Boxes
• Groundskeeper applications
• Trees/Flowers planted
• and public parking areas mulched.

The Board’s next regular meeting will be at 5:15-p.m. June 21st, at Cedar Park.

Police in Jefferson, Saturday, have confirmed there was a second explosion at the Landus grain elevator Saturday night, in Jefferson. The first explosion occurred Friday morning at the Landus Cooperative, in Jefferson. Landus officials said smoldering grain in a self-contained bin located next to the grain elevator led to the second, smaller dust explosion, which happened at around 7:15-p.m., Saturday. Authorities said there were no injuries in either explosion.

The Cass County Conservation Board is holding a “Movie in the Park” Campground Program! Cass County Naturalist Lora Kanning says they will be showing “The Secret Garden”. The public program will be held at the Campground Shelter at Cold Springs Park in Lewis, on Friday May 28th 2021, beginning at 9:00 pm. There is no charge. In the movie, Mary Lennox , a young orphan, living with her domineering uncle stumbles upon a whimsical garden tucked away on the far reaches of the estate. Mary then experiences a series of fantastical adventures in her newfound playground. It’s based on the novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett. Bring a blanket or chair, Dress for the weather. The movie may be rescheduled to a later date if it rains, and You DO NOT have to be a registered camper to attend the program.

And, the Cass County Conservation Board is holding “Stand Up Paddleboard” Demonstration. The public demonstration will be held on Saturday May 29th from 1 until 4 pm at the Cold Springs Park Beach. Again, there is no charge to participate. SUP is the fastest growing sport in the paddling community not only across the country, but especially right here in land-locked areas like Iowa. It’s fun, healthy as a total body work-out and offers a unique perspective when it comes to being on the water. After a quick demonstration try out the boards for yourself.

If you do not bring a life jacket, one will be provided to you. Children must be 16 years or older. Paddler must weigh LESS than 250 LBS. The Stand Up Paddleboard programs will be on the last Saturday of every month, Ending Labor Day Weekend on Saturday September 4th. Programs will be cancelled if there is unsafe weather conditions on the Lake.

Saturday May 29th

1PM- 5 spots

2:30PM- 5 spots

June 26th

1pm- 5 Spots

2:30pm- 5 Spots

Cold Springs Park- Beach

You MUST CALL to get your spot! 712-769-2372.

(Des Moines) — The U.S. Drought Monitor released on Thursday showed some improvement for areas in the southern part of the Iowa, while other areas continue to deal with and worry about, drought conditions. State Climatologist Dr. Justin Glisan says many counties in southern Iowa were taken out of the Abnormally Dry (D-0) category. Currently, all drought coverage for Iowa is either in central or northern Iowa. He cited rainfall totals of one-to three-inches as the reason why southern area was removed from the D-0 category.

Glisan says Iowa farmers have had a great window to get crops planted at a solid pace, although there is concern for growers in northwest Iowa, specifically, where drought conditions have reached the D-2 (severe) level. He said “We would need normal and above-average rainfall moving forward to really keep drought conditions status quo, or to start chipping away at those precipitation deficits.”

The good news for the coming week, according to Glisan, is that rain and warmer conditions are in the forecast for much of the Iowa.

Officials with a grain elevator in Jefferson say no injuries were reported following an explosion this (Friday) morning. Landus Cooperative Executive Vice President of Communications and Marketing Kerrey Kerr-Enskat said in a statement to local media: “There was a dust explosion at the Landus Jefferson location at approximately 8:00am this morning, Friday, May 14 resulting in property damage. All employees are accounted for and there were no injuries.” Kerr-Enskat said also “The situation is contained and under control. An investigation into the cause of the incident will be conducted.”

Local authorities described the property damage as catastrophic. A grain elevator shift where the explosion took place also blew the tops of the other cluster of grain bins off, along with severely damaging the catwalks and scaffoldings on top of the structures. The west side of the whole structure was crumbling Friday morning.

Firefighters from Jefferson, Scranton Grand Junction, and Carroll responded to the scene, along with Jefferson Police, Greene County Ambulance crewsd and the Iowa State Patrol.

(By Atlantic FFA reporter Aspen Niklasen) – Atlantic FFA member Taylor McCreedy was selected as a 2021 Stars Over Iowa Finalist as part of the 93rd Iowa FFA State Leadership Conference at Iowa Events Center in Des Moines, Iowa, April 18- 20, 2021. 6 finalists were selected in the Agricultural Placement award area. The finalists were selected from a pool of 621 FFA members that will earn the Iowa FFA Degree—the highest honor the Iowa FFA Association can bestow upon an FFA member. “It was incredible to be a finalist and was an absolute honor to be on stage representing my chapter. It was definitely an amazing experience and an honor I was blessed to receive.” McCreedy said.

The star awards recognize students who have developed outstanding agricultural skills and competencies through their career development programs and demonstrated outstanding management skills. Taylor has been fortunate to be able to work with different species of livestock on a variety of levels. McCreedy said, “The skills I have developed are different for each species, and I have learned a lot from the diverse experiences. I have researched and developed feed regimes for the horses based on purpose and level of activity. This has improved their body condition, muscle, and overall health. For the dairy goats, I studied the physical structure and analyzed strengths and weaknesses of our does, including milk production, and located bucks for breeding that would correct the deficiencies.” Over the last two years, Taylor has been able to eliminate a shoulder issue that some of the goats had, and have become very competitive showing them. As a result of this success, Taylor has had many inquiries about selling future offspring.

Taylor McCreedy

Star Award group photo

“This has been a huge accomplishment for me because it involved learning a great deal about how dairy goats are judged and scored.” McCreedy said. In addition, Taylor learned to analyzed a lot of different bucks to find the perfect match for each doe. “Working with our meat goats has been similar to the dairy goats in my efforts to produce higher quality and faster growing market animals. I developed feed schedules and mixture to maximize rate of gain and successfully sold market animals that have become champions.” McCreedy has also learned a lot about the cow/calf operation and has become quite skilled at pulling calves.’It takes different skills to be successful with each species’, McCreedy said.

Stars Over Iowa finalists receive a plaque and a cash award. The Stars Over Iowa program is possible with support from Beck’s Hybrids through the Iowa FFA Foundation. Listed below are the Stars Over Iowa Finalists. Star Finalists in Agricultural Placement: Taylor McCreedy, Atlantic FFA, Atlantic Hunter Thompson, Edgewood-Colesburg FFA, Edgewood Kesley Holdgrafer, Northeast FFA, Goose Lake Kolton Eisma, West Sioux FFA, Hawarden Talin Knobloch, West Lyon FFA, Inwood Michael DeJong, Montezuma FFA, Montezuma.

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In a first for Atlantic FFA Taylor McCreedy won the 2021 Diversified Livestock Production. Taylor started DSB Ranch where she trains and boards 3 horses, raises high quality beef cattle and raises dairy goats. In the midst of COVID, Taylor came up with the idea to make and sell goat milk soap to overcome profit deficits. Taylor hopes to continue and improve genetics within her operation and build her brand with all of her animals on the farm.

Taylor plans to focus on working with her horses to better improve their performance, and has advanced to working with young horses to learn to break and train them from the ground up. McCreedy said, “I prioritize the importance of nutrition, different dietary needs for different stages of training, supplements, and general health as the horses age.” Taylor plans to continue to work with a training barn to further develop her skills, while helping riders by assisting with a youth camp over the summer. Taylor plans on continuing to develop her business, “This year I have expanded to include boarding, and I am responsible for the daily care of all the animals in my barn. I have really enjoyed the opportunity to work with young people, to work with younger horses, to provide board and care for horses, and to continue learning by riding other horses”. McCreedy said.

100% of FFA members have proficiencies as part of the agricultural program and the FFA. These proficiencies range in the areas of Agricultural Communications to Home and/or Community Development and from Diversified Agricultural Production to Swine Production. Proficiency Award winners have excelled in their Supervised Agricultural Experience (SAE) Programs. These awards encourage members to develop specialized skills that will apply toward a future career. State winners will advance to the National FFA competition where they will compete against winners from the other State FFA Associations. The Iowa FFA Proficiency Awards program is possible with support from the many partners of the Iowa FFA Foundation. The specific partner for each area is identified in our summary of results.

ATLANTIC, IA (May 13, 2021) – Produce in the Park kicks off the 2021 farmers market season on June 3rd. Cass County Wellness Coordinator Brigham Hoege says the market is excited to have live music, prepared foods, and community groups at the park in 2021.

Produce in the Park is a community-oriented farmers market held every Thursday evening (4:30-6:30 PM) from June 3 through September 30 in the Atlantic City Park. Shoppers at the market will find delicious fresh produce, baked goods, meats, farm-fresh eggs, and a variety of crafting products such as candles, soaps, and lotions.

Produce in the Park also offers the chance to learn about community organizations, and plenty of space to relax and distance while enjoying live music and dinner in the shady city park. “Produce in the Park is a great place to chill after work on Thursdays,” commented Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Bailey Smith. “Grab dinner and relax in the shade while listening to live music. Don’t forget to bring your lawn chair!”

While Produce in the Park is welcoming community organizations back to the park in 2021, safety remains a top priority. To minimize the spread of COVID-19, Produce in the Park asks customers to bring their own lawn chairs and blankets, maintain a respectful six-foot distance from others, and mask when distancing isn’t possible.

Produce in the Park 2021 summer farmers markets are sponsored by the Atlantic Community Promotion Commission, First Whitney Bank & Trust, Cass County Tourism, the Nishna Valley Family YMCA, Cass County Health System, and the Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce.

Produce in the Park continues to accept vendors for the 2021 season. Both food and craft vendors are invited to join the market. Vendors can register for the entire season, or sign up for just a few weeks. More information on vending at Produce in the Park can be found at www.produceintheparkatlanticiowa.com. Questions on vending can be directed to Market Manager Brigham Hoegh at produceintheparkatlanticiowa@gmail.com or (712) 249-5870.

Stay up to date on the latest with Produce in the Park by signing up for the Produce in the Park newsletter at www.produceintheparkatlanticiowa.com, and following Produce in the Park on Facebook @ProduceInThePark and Instagram @ProduceInTheParkAtlanticIA.