The Cass County Soil and Water Conservation District reports they will be accepting applications for cover crops until Thursday, August 15^th.  Cover Crops are used to reduce soil erosion and capture residual nutrients to protect our soil resources and water quality.  Producers should stop by the district office located at 503 W. 7^th Street, Ste 1, Atlantic, Iowa  50022 to make application.  Please stop by the office or call (712)-243-3180 for more information. 

The latest information from the Atlantic Animal Shelter with Andrea Farrior and Chris Parks.

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Ever wonder what it’s like to be a farmer today? Over the next 50 years, farmers will need to produce more food than has been produced in the last 10,000 years, combined. In order to educate youth about these agriculture issues and topics, the Monsanto Research Farm in Atlantic, hosted an FFA Field Day on June 3rd. All FFA chapters in southwest Iowa were invited to attend the day of fun and farming.

The field day, sponsored by Asgrow® and DEKALB® brands, taught FFA students from Griswold, Clarinda, Southwest Valley and Glenwood High Schools about soil science, insect and weed identification, and other agronomic topics to better prepare them for upcoming FFA competitions. Nancy Faber, district sales manager for Monsanto, said “Our FFA Field Day is a great way to interact with our next generation of agricultural leaders.We went over information to help prepare the students for their upcoming FFA Career Development Events (CDE) contests. I wish the best of luck to all the FFA students at their upcoming events.”

FFA students also had the opportunity to experience a hands-on safety simulator that teaches the importance of safe driving. Students sat behind the wheel of a car and “drove” through various environments using the high-tech Drive Square driving simulator. After putting on special glasses and navigating through various routes, students were shown the dangers of distracted driving.

Monsanto says it has been a proud supporter of the National FFA for the past 50 years. FFA makes a positive difference in the lives of students by developing their potential for premier leadership, personal growth and career success through agricultural education.

(Press Release)

SPENCER, Iowa (AP) — A Spencer man has caught a $1,600 walleye on Big Spirit Lake in northern Iowa. Joe Larson caught a tagged fish that was part of a contest sponsored by the Iowa Great Lakes Area Chamber of Commerce. In early May, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources released six tagged walleye in Big Spirit Lake, West Lake Okoboji and East Lake Okoboji for the contest. For anglers who paid $15 and registered for the extended contest, there’s still a chance to win some money for catching one of the tagged fish up until Sept. 1.

Larson caught his fish Thursday and the Chamber of Commerce released details on Tuesday. Proceeds from the Great Walleye Weekend contest go to the Easter Seals of Iowa.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A Department of Natural Resources biologist says Iowa’s pheasant population likely will decline this year because of the cool and wet spring. DNR upland wildlife biologist Todd Bogenschutz says Iowa’s pheasant population usually increases after mild winters and dry, warm springs. This year, a snowy winter was followed by record-setting cold temperatures and rain. Because of those conditions, Bogenschutz says the pheasant population will likely be smaller than in 2012.

Habitat also has been an issue for the pheasant population, as high commodity prices lead more farmers to grow crops rather than set aside land for wildlife under the federal Conservation Reserve Program. But Bogenschutz says Iowa has made progress in creating more habitat for pheasants through an effort to set aside 50,000 acres of land to aid the birds.

The conservative group “Americans for Prosperity” is urging members of the U.S. House to vote against the Farm Bill when it comes up for a vote, perhaps later today (Tuesday). Christine Harbin is federal policy analyst for Americans for Prosperity. “This so-called Farm Bill is filled with food stamps and corporate hand-outs,” Harbin says. Her group objects to the subsidies farmers receive to buy crop insurance, calling that “corporate welfare.”  “It doesn’t overwhelmingly go towards small, struggling farmers like my grandmother and grandfather,” Harbin says. “They go to large, well-connected farm companies.” 

Last week the top Republican in the U.S. House — Ohio Congressman John Boehner — announced he would vote for the Farm Bill. Americans for Prosperity is urging Iowa’s entire congressional delegation to vote against it.  “We’re targeting and trying to hold accountable people on both sides of the aisle because people on both sides of the aisle get the Farm Bill wrong,” Harbin says. 

Americans for Prosperity favors an end to farm subsidies. The group’s Iowa director says farmers are “doing quite well for themselves” and federal farm policy should be “based on free market principles” rather than “handouts.” The group also argues consumers pay too much at grocery store because of Farm Bill policies. Last year lawmakers passed a one-year extension of the 2008 Farm Bill when an updated Farm Bill stalled in the House.

(Radio Iowa)

U-S Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack is calling on Congress to pass an immigration reform bill, asserting it would bring a variety of benefits to the ag industry and to rural states like Iowa. Vilsack, a former Iowa governor, spoke with reporters Monday in a conference call about the start of National Small Business Week.  “As we deal with comprehensive immigration reform, we look for the benefits of trying to fix a broken system,” Vilsack says. “One of the benefits is that immigrants come here with a dream and come here with a hope of a better life and one way that they can do that is by being their own boss and developing their own business, which is why immigrants are more likely than those who currently live here in the United States to start a small business.”

Just last week, a report from the U-S Census Bureau found Iowa’s largest minority group — Hispanics — is gaining population quickly. New data shows nearly 163-thousand Latinos lived in the state as of last July, an increase of better than three-percent in the previous year. “Certainly in the agricultural area, we’ve had a number of examples of families coming in and starting a small fruit or vegetable production facility and having that expand over time to support multiple families,” Vilsack says. “This is in addition to the benefits that agriculture will receive from the comprehensive immigration reform bill with a stable and secure workforce, a guest worker system that works.”

The secretary says passage of the bill will help create jobs, in addition to more taxpayers who can help the country reduce deficits more quickly. The Census Bureau report found the growth rate for Hispanics in Iowa is ten times faster than the state’s overall population.

(Radio Iowa)