Tuesday was primary election day. Republicans in the new Iowa House District 87 had to choose a candidate for the November General election between two incumbents. The recent redistricting that occurred across the state due to the 2020 census forced State Representatives Joe Mitchell of Mount Pleasant and Jeff Shipley of Birmingham into a face-off for the nomination. District 87 represents all of Van Buren County and parts of Jefferson and Henry County. Mitchell previously represented all of Henry County in the Iowa House and, as expected, won the precincts in Henry County that are part of District 87 by a vote of 697 to 243. However, it looks like Shipley, who is from Birmingham in Van Buren County had his home county on his side. He received 650 votes. Mitchell received 313. Shipley also won the Jefferson County precincts in District 87- 712 to 309. Final totals…Shipley 1,605, Mitchell 1,319. On the Democrats ballot Mike Heaton dips his toe into politics without competition. Heaton and Shipley will run against each other in November.  Henry County was split in the re-districting. So…the rest of the county is now in House District 95 along with all of Louisa County and parts of Des Moines and Muscatine Counties. Taylor Collins of Mediapolis receives the Republican nomination unopposed. There were no candidates on the Democrats ballot.

The hunt is on and everyone is invited to participate in the Villages Orb Project! It is an interactive art installation created by glass artist, Tim Blair of Bloom and Bark Farm, in collaboration with the Villages of Van Buren and Villages Folk School. 50 hand-blown clear glass orbs and two colored orbs, all about the size of an orange, have been created and hidden along the beautiful trails in Lacey-Keosauqua State Park and Van Buren County Conservation trails.

Orbs will be placed within a few feet of the trail – never on private property. Please be respectful and leave the natural areas undisturbed. All orbs have been individually signed, dated and numbered so no two people will have the same one. If you find one, go to the Villages of Van Buren website to register the orb you found. PLEASE, only ONE orb per person. If you do find more than one, please hide it again in the same are you found it for another hunter to discover.

This project has been a labor of love for Blair who has been wandering the trails here all his life and became hooked on glass blowing about 11 years ago. It incorporates two things he enjoys and is meant to encourage others to get out and have fun exploring the scenic trails throughout the Villages.

The hunt has already begun so get outside, explore the beauty in the Villages of Van Buren, and you just might find an orb!

More information can be found on our website, including links to trail maps, at villagesofvanburen.com/villages-orb-project or call the Villages of Van Buren at 800-868-7822 / 319-293-7111. And be sure to follow us on Facebook and Instagram, @VillagesOrbProject.

Provided by Justin Glisan, Ph.D., State Climatologist, Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship

Several weather disturbances brought widespread rains to Iowa during the first week of June, the start of meteorological summer. While northwestern Iowa reported above-average totals, the remainder of the state was near to below average on moisture. Temperatures also fluctuated through the reporting period as various air masses filtered across Iowa. Most of the state observed seasonal conditions with warmer readings in eastern Iowa and below-average temperatures in the northwest; the statewide average temperature was 66.6 degrees, 0.9 degree above normal.

A line of showers and thunderstorms continued moving across eastern Iowa into the evening hours on Sunday (29th) as gusty southerly winds pushed daytime highs into the low to mid 80s. A strong low pressure center over northern Minnesota fired severe thunderstorms along a cold front just after midnight on Monday (30th) with several northwestern counties reporting severe straight-line winds and hail. There was a lull in thunderstorm activity for much of the morning and early afternoon until the line refired in western Iowa ahead of the dry line, a demarcation boundary for higher dewpoint temperatures. A second wave of strong thunderstorms fired along the cold front as it pushed into central Iowa with afternoon temperatures in the upper 80s and 90s fueling atmospheric instability. The line was narrow and fast-moving with locally heavy downpours and additional hail and high wind reports. Overnight lows hung in the upper 50s and 60s under cloud cover and southerly winds. Event rain totals at 7:00 am on Tuesday (31st) were highest in northwestern Iowa with over 20 stations reporting at least an inch; Lake Park (Dickinson County) observed 2.07 inches while Spencer (Clay County) measured 2.27 inches. Stations in southern Iowa saw totals between 0.30-0.50 inch with lesser amounts farther east. The system finally moved out of southeastern Iowa in the early afternoon hours, where rain totals were at or under a few tenths of an inch, though Keokuk Lock and Dam (Lee Country) reported 1.31 inches. High pressure took hold of the Midwest into Wednesday (1st) with clearing skies and light, northerly winds. Daytime temperatures remained in the upper 60s and low 70s as an isolated disturbance brought light rain to portions of southern Iowa.

The pattern cleared into Thursday (2nd) morning with chillier lows observed in western Iowa under starry skies and light winds. Temperatures stayed in the 40s with a statewide average low of 47 degrees, eight degrees below normal. Afternoon highs reached into the mid to upper 70s under northwesterly flow, low relative humidity and mostly sunny skies. Friday (3rd) was slightly cooler as a disturbance approached from the northwest, bringing in light to moderate rain over northern Iowa through the evening and overnight hours. Rain totals measured on Saturday (4th) morning were under Sibley’s (Osceola County) 0.50 inch and generally in the 0.10 – 0.20-inch range at stations reporting rainfall over much of Iowa’s northern two-thirds. Spotty showers persisted through the day, especially in eastern Iowa where highs remained in the low to mid 60s, while mid to upper 70s were experienced in the southwest. Overnight lows into Sunday (5th) held in the 50s as clouds cleared and isolated pockets of fog formed in the absence of wind at multiple stations in central and western Iowa.

Weekly precipitation totals ranged from 0.05 inch in Sac City (Sac County) to 3.19 inches at Spencer Municipal Airport (Clay County). The statewide weekly average precipitation was 0.64 inch while the normal is 1.17 inches. Oelwein (Fayette County) reported the week’s high temperature of 92 degrees on the 30th, 15 degrees above normal. Cherokee (Cherokee County) and Sioux Rapids (Buena Vista County) reported the week’s low temperature of 40 degrees on the 2nd, on average 15 degrees below normal.

May 30 – June 5, 2022

DES MOINES, Iowa (June 6, 2022) – Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig commented today on the Iowa Crop Progress and Condition Report released by the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service. The report is released weekly April through November.

“Strong to severe thunderstorms on Memorial Day left scattered reports of hail and straight-line wind damage to some emerging crops in western Iowa,” said Secretary Naig. “Looking ahead, rain chances remain in the forecast along with cooler than normal temperatures.”

The weekly report is also available on the USDA’s website at nass.usda.gov.

Crop Report
A few days of light rainfall resulted in 4.8 days suitable for fieldwork during the week ending June 5, 2022, according to the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service. Fieldwork activities included replanting wet fields, cutting hay, and chemical applications where winds allowed.

Topsoil moisture conditions rated 2 percent very short, 12 percent short, 78 percent adequate and 8 percent surplus. Subsoil moisture conditions rated 3 percent very short, 17 percent short, 74 percent adequate and 6 percent surplus.

Planting is almost complete, with 98 percent of Iowa’s corn crop planted, 11 days behind last year but 3 days ahead of the 5-year average. Eighty-seven percent of the corn crop has emerged, 6 days behind last year and 1 day behind average. Corn condition rated 86 percent good to excellent. Ninety-four percent of soybeans have been planted, 5 days behind last year but 6 days ahead of the 5-year average. Sixty-nine percent of soybeans have emerged, 1 week behind last year but 1 day ahead of average. Iowa’s first soybean condition rating of the crop year was 0 percent very poor, 2 percent poor, 16 percent fair, 67 percent good, and 15 percent excellent. Ninety-six percent of the oat crop has emerged, almost 2 weeks behind last year and 1 week behind the 5-year average. Twenty-two percent of the oat crop has headed, 5 days behind last year. Iowa’s oat condition rated 82 percent good to excellent.

Forty-two percent of the State’s first cutting of alfalfa hay has been completed. All hay conditions rated 73 percent good to excellent. Pasture condition rated 64 percent good to excellent. No livestock issues were reported.