The Western Iowa No-till (WIN) Demonstration Field Day, scheduled for June 21^st at the Carstens 1880 Farmstead south of Shelby, Iowa, will address a wide variety of topics for local producers interested in learning more about the practical management of soil heath, fertility and alternative crop rotation systems. Registration opens at 8-a.m., with coffee and rolls provided by Farm Credit Services of America. Local agribusinesses will also be on hand beginning at 8-a.m., to visit with producers in the morning and showcase their services/equipment.

Western IA No Till Day at Carstens 1880 Farmstead (photo from the Carstens Farmstead website)

The field day program begins at 9-a.m., with rotating breakout sessions. John Sawyer, Iowa State University Agronomy Department, will cover nitrogen application timing and rates, while Rick Bednarek, State Soil Scientist with USDA-NRCS discusses maintaining and managing soil health. The breakout sessions will be followed at 11-a.m., by an overview of 2016 Iowa Weather & Long-Term Trends, presented by Harry Hillaker, State Climatologist with IDALS.

At 11:45, the program will break for lunch, with a barbeque lunch available on grounds for $5. After lunch, Matt Liebman, Iowa State University, will discuss the benefits of diversifying corn-soybean rotations by adding a non-traditional crop. To wrap up the program, Tim Youngquist, Iowa State University Ag Specialist, will give an overview of the STRIPS Trial project- Science-based Trials of Row-crops Integrated with Prairie Strips- and discuss project implementation in a row-crop setting.

Anyone with an interest in the practical application and impact of soil conservation practices, whether looking for ideas to begin adopting no-till practices or a long-time producer looking to improve production results, is encouraged to attend this field day.  There is no charge to attend this event, but pre-registration is requested by June 15^th to ensure a lunch will be available.

A barbeque lunch, with sides, dessert and a drink, will be available for $5 the day of the event. Registration can be completed by e-mailing csgorham@iastate.edu or by calling the Harrison County Extension Office at 888-644-2105. More information is available at many local ISU Extension and NRCS offices, or can be found online at www.extension.iastate.edu/cass.

The field day is brought to you by NRCS, ISU Extension and the Soil and Water Conservation Districts (SWCD) in Harrison, East & West Pottawattamie, Cass and Shelby Counties, along with many local supporting agribusinesses. 2016 Business Sponsors include Farm Bureau in East & West Pottawattamie, Shelby & Harrison Counties, Avoca Seed, Cyclone Seed, HTS Ag, Farmers and Merchants State Bank, Heartland Ag, Iowa Soybean Association, Iowa Corn Growers Association, Sorensen Equipment Co. and United Bank of Iowa.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has resumed inspections of egg-handling facilities more than a year after they were suspended due to the nation’s worst bird flu outbreak. FDA spokeswoman Lauren Sucher says the agency resumed inspections Wednesday.

Federal on-site egg inspections at processors with 3,000 or more birds were suspended in 21 states in May 2015 after the FDA consulted with state veterinarians concerned about spreading the bird flu virus. States inspect smaller operations.

About 49 million turkeys and chickens were euthanized or died of the bird flu virus in 15 states, including more than 24 million egg layers in Iowa, the nation’s leading egg producer. The inspections are done primarily to prevent salmonella contamination in eggs.

w/Amanda McNees.

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The Iowa DNR said Wednesday that a Union County maintenance crew accidentally nicked a hose used to transport manure Tuesday afternoon, while they were mowing. The incident happened in a right-of-way about one-mile north of Thayer. Officials said while the hose was not in use, about 800 to 900 gallons of residual manure leaked from a small hole. An unknown amount of manure reached an unnamed tributary of Four Mile Creek.

Iowa Select representatives reported the spill as they responded, quickly placing small dams in the unnamed creek to collect manure and pumping it out to land apply it. DNR staff checked the unnamed creek Tuesday. Field tests showed low ammonia levels. They found no dead fish.

Wednesday morning, DNR was on site and concluded most of the released manure probably remained in the right of way or on the shoulders of the gravel road. Iowa Select continues to clean up, scraping and gathering manure along the road edges. The DNR will consider appropriate enforcement action.

Expansion in the country’s beef cattle herd is bringing cheaper meat prices to the grocery store. Lower costs for feed and other incentives over the past three years sparked the nation’s beef producers to bring more cattle to market. Iowa State University economist Lee Schulz says lower retail prices arrived a bit quicker than expected.

Schulz says, “What many of us thought would be a much longer, prolonged process to get to this new price level, really occurred in the last 3 months of 2015.” Schulz says a new report from the U-S Department of Agriculture shows ground beef is about 30 cents a pound cheaper now than it was a year ago.

Schulz says, “We’ve seen increases in beef production really started in late 2015 and into 2016, so from the year-over-year standpoint, that increase in production will lead to lower prices.” As the approaching summer heats up, he says other meats that are popular on the grill, like steaks and ribs, should also have lower prices than last year.

(Radio Iowa)

• KJAN, Atlantic  .39″ (10.27″ in May)
• 7NE of Atlantic  .46″
• Elk Horn  .81″
• Creston  .18″

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DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Although rain has slowed progress in some regions of the country, farmers planting corn remain ahead of schedule. Nationally, 94 percent of the crop is planted, two percentage points ahead of the five-year average. The U.S. Department of Agriculture said Tuesday virtually all the corn is planted in Iowa and 90 percent of the plants have emerged from the dirt, about five days ahead of average.

Iowa’s soybean planting is 10 percentage points ahead of normal with 88 percent planted. Nebraska’s corn crop is at 96 percent, near the five-year average and soybean planting is at 73 percent, behind the average of 82 percent.

Rain is presenting challenges in areas of both states and water is reported standing in some fields from the frequent showers and thunderstorms in recent days.

Atlantic, Iowa – The Iowa State University Extension and Outreach Master Gardener program is again offering a summer webinar series in 2016. The series is free, and open to anyone interested in attending to learn more about the benefits of shade in landscape, tree problems and native garden insects. In addition, Master Gardeners who attend will gain educational hours for attending. The Cass County Extension office in Atlantic will be one of the host sites for these two-hour webinars in June, July and August of 2016.

Details for the summer webinars at the Cass County location:

• Tuesday, June 14 at 6:30 PM – Got Shade? ISU Extension and Outreach horticulturist Denny Schrock will teach participants how to utilize shade plants in the landscape while focusing on plants native to Iowa.
• Tuesday, July 12 at 6:30 PM – Getting to the Bottom of Tree Problems with Lina Rodriguez-Salamanca, ISU Extension and Outreach plant pathologist and diagnostician with the ISU Plant and Insect Clinic. Participants will become familiar with some of the common symptoms of tree problems and learn what to keep an eye out for.
• Tuesday, August 9 at 6:30 PM – What’s all the Buzz About? Nathan Brockman is the curator of the butterfly wing of Reiman Gardens at Iowa State University. Attendees will learn about insects native to Iowa and what to do to increase the enjoyment of these six-legged garden visitors.

To register, contact the Cass County Extension Office at 712-243-1132 or email keolson@iastate.edu. The webinars are free of charge and open to anyone who may be interested.

(Press Release from Cass County Extension)