(Radio Iowa) — Warm, dry weather helped with planting and crop growth this past week.  The U-S-D-A says the corn planting is virtually complete and 97 percent of the corn in the ground has already emerged. That’s more than two weeks ahead of last year and ten days ahead of the five-year average. Eighty-five percent of the corn is rated in good to excellent condition. The soybean crop is not too far behind — with just three percent left to be planted. That’s three weeks ahead of last year and 12 days ahead of average. The report says 87 percent of beans have emerged and 82 percent are in good to excellent condition.

(Radio Iowa) — The Iowa legislature has passed another bill that toughens penalties for those who trespass at a food operation, including livestock confinements and meat packing plants. Representative Jarad Klein, a Republican from Keota, says it’s a pretty simple concept. “It doesn’t mean you can’t go up and knock on somebody’s door that’s a farmer,” Klein says. “You just can’t go in their livestock building, for example, without permission.”

Republican Senator Ken Rozenboom of Oskaloosa says he was targeted by animal rights protesters who got inside a hog confinement he had leased to someone else and released photos and video the group said showed animal neglect. “The M.O. here is simply lies, deception and intimidation. That’s what they do,” Rosenboom says. “In my case, intimidation to the point of a number of death threats. That’s who we’re dealing with.”

The bill enhances the penalty for trespassing in or on a food operation to an aggravated misdemeanor. A second offense would be a class D felony. Senator Liz Mathis (MATH-iss), a Democrat from Cedar Rapids, says what happened to Rozenboom is wrong. “But let me put this in another perspective,” Mathis says. “We have current laws on the books that deal with trespasses…harassment and damage to your reputation,” Mathis says. “We have current laws that will protect you.”

Republican Representative Louie Zumbach of Coggon says current law isn’t protecting barns where livestock is bred and fed. “People are often on our farms without being invited and it needs to stop,” Zumbach says, “and this is the effort to do that.” Critics predict the bill — if the governor signs it into law — will be successfully challenged in court. The bill passed the House and Senate Friday. The enhanced penalties for trespassing in the bill would apply to plants where eggs, milk and fish are processed as well as meat packing plants.

Officials with “Grow Another Row Cass County,” report specific places, days and times for distribution of produce in each town in the County will be available, beginning June 15. The project is designed to hare extra harvested produce with hungry families.

If tomatoes are on your growing list, think about fertilizing them three to four weeks after transplanting, but use discretion. Experts warn though, over-fertilization promotes excessive leafy growth and may inhibit fruit development. It’s not too late to plant tomatoes and it’s the perfect time to plant green beans.

(Radio Iowa) — Plenty of Iowans are hooked on fishing during the pandemic as a record of nearly 200-thousand fishing licenses have been sold statewide this spring, which is up 30- to 40-percent from a year ago. Joe Larscheid, Fisheries Chief of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, says this is a free fishing weekend, today (Friday) through Sunday.

“Any Iowa resident can fish for free,” Larscheid says. “There’s bluegills and crappies close to shore. The fishing’s excellent. It’s a great chance if you haven’t got your license yet to get out with friends and family and enjoy Iowa’s natural resources.” The popularity of some outdoor activities is booming with so many people working from home due to COVID-19 concerns.

Larscheid says to use common sense and keep a good six feet of distance between yourselves and others while fishing. “We have a lot of lakes in Iowa, a lot of ponds and rivers, there’s lots of places to spread out,” Larscheid says. “If there’s a bunch of people along one part of a shore, just find a part of the shore where you can practice social distancing and just get out and have fun. We’ve got plenty of room for everybody.”

Sales of fishing licenses in Iowa have been the best this spring since 2002, the year they became available electronically. “We have record license sales in March, April and May,” Larscheid says. “A lot of people are out there fishing. It’s like opening day every day. People are staying home, they’re staying closer to home. Being outside, it’s easier to practice social distancing and have fun with your family and friends.” Iowa fishing licenses are available in several types, including yearly, seven-day, or even just 24-hour licenses.

Find a list of stocked lakes and ponds that are easily accessible in parks and along trails on the DNR’s interactive Iowa Community Fisheries Atlas at iowadnr.gov.

The City of Atlantic’s annual battle against mosquitoes begins next week. City crews will be out with the fogger to spray from 4-until 7-a.m. every Thursday and Friday, beginning June 11th and 12th.  The spraying will take place weather permitting, throughout the summer, until further notice.

A common mosquito

FORT DODGE, Iowa— Iowa DNR environmental specialists responded to a wastewater discharge to surface water between the Fort Dodge Industrial Park and the City of Fort Dodge on Thursday.  Officials say a leak from a force main carrying mixed wastewater from both the Cargill Ethanol plant and the CJ Bio America Lysine production plant to the city’s wastewater treatment plant entered a surface water intake that was eventually discharged to Lizard Creek. The bypass was reported to the DNR on Thursday but believed to have started Wednesday evening. Wastewater was rerouted early Thursday morning through another force main to the wastewater treatment plant. Wastewater entered a surface intake in a cornfield and discharged to a drainage ditch, which flows into Lizard Creek.

Samples from Lizard Creek have been collected and based on preliminary results, ammonia and oxygen levels appear to test normal.  No impact to aquatic life has been documented as a result of the bypass. Repairs to the force main are to be completed this (Friday) morning. The DNR still encourages caution for anyone in the area of the discharge and reminds residents to keep children and pets away from the discharge area for the next 24 to 48 hours. DNR staff will be onsite again today (Friday), to evaluate Lizard Creek.

The Cass County Fair Board met Thursday, June 4th, and decided to cancel all non-4-H and FFA Activities for the 2020 Cass County Fair. All youth contests will be held in a “show and go” or other modified format. Please stay tuned as we plan to announce additional details for individual contests in the coming weeks.

Officials said their primary consideration, “Is the health and safety of our community and fair supporters. We understand the value of gathering as a community, and we do not take this decision lightly.”

The Board said also, :To our valued sponsors, you will be hearing directly from the fair board soon. To our many supporters, we hope you will plan to join us for the 2021 Cass County Fair on July 28-August 3. We thank you for your many years of support, and for your understanding as we navigate these uncertain times together.”

“Grow Another Row, Cass County!” is a campaign to encourage residents to grow more food to share in 2020. The campaign is launching to address food challenges created by COVID-19, as
more people are finding themselves needing a little extra help keeping food on the table.

Denise O’Brien of Rolling Acres Farm with her tomatoes in 2019.

Most Wanted Produce: According to ISU Extension, the 13 best produce donations are:
tomatoes, winter squash, zucchini, potatoes, onions, peppers, cucumbers, melons, broccoli, cabbage, sweet potatoes, carrots, and beans.

Now is a great time to plant green beans.

Pole beans need a trellis to climb on but save some strain on the back at harvest time! A bean trellis can be as simple as planting along the garden
fence.

Can you grow another row of tomatoes?

Denise O’Brien of Rolling Acres Farm is focused on producing greenhouse raised plants to help people start their own gardens. This year she’s
giving away free tomato plants to people growing another row. Learn more about Rolling Acres Farm and contact Denise through her website www.rollingacres76.com, or find Rolling Acres
Farm on Facebook @RollingAcresAtlanticIowa. Thank you to Rolling Acres Farm for the support!!

How do your tomatoes grow??
Do your tomatoes often get overgrown and hard to pick? Trellising or caging gets those plants (and tomatoes) up off the ground, making them easier to pick and preventing rot. Additionally,
pruning excess foliage from indeterminate varieties will increase fruit set and speed up ripening. Indeterminate varieties produce leaves and flowers continuously through the growing
season. To prune effectively, pick one main growing stem and remove all other leaves and ‘suckers.’ Suckers are the little shoots that form in the axil where the leaf stem attaches to the
main growing stem.

For more information, please contact:
Brigham Hoegh, Wellness Coordinator
Cass County ISU Extension
712-249-5870

For more gardening tips and to sign up to participate in Grow Another Row visit https://www.extension.iastate.edu/cass/content/grow-another-row-cass-county.

Authorities in western/southwest Iowa are investigating separate burglaries and thefts from an ag-equipment dealer. Police in Shenandoah say a burglary took place last Saturday evening at Vetter Equipment, in Shenandoah. Authorities say the suspects entered the building a little after 8:15-p.m., and in a security camera video, were seen loading into a trailer, tools and equipment worth $50,000-to-$80,000. Most of the items stolen were STIHL brand equipment, including leaf blowers, chainsaws, weed eaters, trimmers and other materials. Police were working to try and get the license plate of the vehicle pulling the trailer.

A similar break-in and theft occurred at Vetter Equipment, in Onawa. Additional information about that incident is currently not available. Anyone with information about the burglary at Vetter Equipment in Shenandoah, is asked to call Shenandoah Police at 712-246-3512.

w/Kate Olson.

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