What can we reason but from what we know? -Alexander Pope
What can we reason but from what we know? -Alexander Pope
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No one ever thinks it will happen to them. Recently, we had a beautiful Plant Select Garden in Washington County Fairgrounds. But one day, someone who worked for the county came along spraying a nearby area and turned the garden into a brown landscape. Come to find out 2, 4 D was used for broadleaved weeds around the garden. The garden sits at the entrance of the fairgrounds which has a gravel parking lot in front and a gravel entrance road. You can imagine that both the parking lot and gravel entrance road needed to be sprayed for weeds....
OK, I know this is a weird title for a column, even for me! As I sat at my desk cranking out a few “Under The Wires” Sue called from her office a few feet down the hall to announce, “it is time to eat.” always on the lookout for a new topic it hit me, “I’ll bet nobody has written a column about an activity everyone engages in at least three times a day (for me at least), every single day of their life! Here goes the first ever attempt at it. We may all be about to learn why no one has ever do...
It was a perfectly good building in its day, six bays of finishing barn plus liquid manure handling capability. Sturdy, practical, and not too far off from today’s standards, the structure was bound to outlast the enterprise it supported. The dilemma that remains for subsequent owners is what to do with a white elephant. Since it is no longer part of a farming operation, every dollar spent on it is simply wasted money when it comes to deductibility. Nothing carries over. The most common a...
The Turf Replacement Program was a bill into law in December of 2022. The second application cycle started as of July 1 through Aug. 31. There has been some mixed messaging about this Turf Replacement Program. First, who is eligible to apply: local governments such as municipalities, counties, cities, public agencies, and municipally owned water providers. Districts such as metropolitan, special districts, water or water and sanitation districts and conservancy districts, like nonprofits such as organizations with 501(c)(3) status who have prog...
An old joke asks the question, “Why do cowboys roll up the sides of their hats?” Answer: So three of them can sit together in the front seat of a pickup. I’m pretty sure there’s no truth to that since cowboy hats pre-date the crew cab dually. I wouldn’t have thought about it at all if something strange hadn’t happened many years ago. In an odd twist of fate, a large city newspaper began running this column. I was their first cowboy writer, I guess, because when the first column came out, my pic...
It is official. The annual gathering of members representing my denomination is in the books. For over 230 years, and a few early unrecorded events, the business of the church has been placed before a delegate body for deliberation. One need not be a delegate to speak one’s mind at the microphone, a time-honored ideal insuring that all have a voice. The speeches in support or non-support of business items mirror many protestant gatherings. We have our bright shining moments as well as those t...
Cottonwoods are fast growing trees in Populus genus. These trees are hardy to zones two through nine. Cottonwood trees produce cotton every other year. They preserve their resources. There is a cottonwood fluff produced around the seed which are cotton fibers. These seeds will cover the lawn or driveway and other parts of the landscape. This can go on for two weeks or more starting late April or early May through either June or July. Is there a way to control the cottonwood seeds? You can reduce the cottonwood seeds with an annual treatment...
When Sue and I married 35 years ago, along with a brilliant partner in love and life, came new family members for me, the Carnahans, including the family patriarch, Fred Carnahan. My new father-in-law was a farmer, cattleman, hunter and fabulous story teller, all the while acting as the magnet that drew his family to his home located on the farm that had been the “Carnahan Place” as long as any neighbor could recall. With five daughters and a son, there was a constant stream of advice see...
On the anniversary of the founding of our republic, there remain concerns over the ongoing debate of the separation of church and state. Everyone, it would seem, has a position to take, and conversations on the issue can become quite complicated. The following account offers a deeper look into the events of a small rural 1040s church that was sharply divided in its theological position regarding church and state. The issue fully came to light when certain members of the congregation concluded...
More often these days there is the realization of time passing. Measured parameters are increasingly difficult to keep nicely contained. Their march into the future is persistent, relentless in ways that are difficult to quantify. What used to be current events are now historical markers centered around specific occurrences in our lives, some anticipated, others not. Is anyone else surprised at recalling events of over sixty years ago? Our own mortality is called into question when that is...
I am pretty sure the question that is this week’s column title has crossed most folk’s minds. “What have I done that anyone will remember and will it be what I had hoped it would be?” As with most things everyone in the world has thought about or already done, I was among the last to consider this weighty thought. I approached it no less enthusiastically than all before me. The result surprised me. In fact it was a bit disappointing. “Under The Wire” columns have popped out of my mind every...
Recent rains have encouraged broadleaf weed growth in growing wheat fields. Kochia, for the most part, is the weed in question although other weeds may also be a factor interfering with this year’s harvest activities. Keep in mind that there are only a small number of pre-harvest aids for controlling weeds in wheat prior to harvest. Also, be aware of pre-harvest intervals before harvesting and feed and grazing intervals following wheat harvest. Pre-harvest interval is the time after a herbicide application is applied before wheat harvest can l...
Being good at something doesn’t necessarily mean you are good at doing it. Yeah, I have been pretty confused by that myself for a lot of years. Nevertheless, I have found evidence of this twisted fact several times in my life. My first observation of this came at least 20 ago, during my rodeo days. In addition to being a calf roper, an event requiring yourself and a semi-cooperative horse, I also team roped. This event required a partner and I was fortunate to have several very good ones. G...
Numerous scriptural references allude to crowds forming whenever Jesus was nearby. The synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke) share common themes and formats in relating stories surrounding Jesus’ three-year ministry. The Gospel of John shares many of the same stories but uses more original material. One telling difference with John is that the author refers to miracles as signs. Jesus is also presented as a mystic. Mystic or not, all was not well for Jesus as the pressures of ministry m...
Letter to the Editor, It is with great pleasure that I am sending distributions from the Trust of Muriel Brown. It was her wish that proceeds from her Trust be distributed by myself on her behalf, based on the performance of her investments. This year, each of the six organizations she cared about will receive a check for $5,489. • The Haxtun Hospital District • The Haxtun School District • The Haxtun United Methodist Church • The Haxtun Swimming Pool • The Haxtun Community Food Basket • The West Phillips County Cemetery Board Muriel woul...
OK, you opened your front door this morning to pick up the latest edition of your local newspaper and were greeted with a face full of those awful, dirty Miller Moths who became residents of your home before the door could be slammed shut. “Where in the world do all these things come from,” you probably asked no one in particular as you searched for the fly swatter. “Why doesn’t someone spray for them?” might be another futile question. Well, here is the answer to both those questions. Miller Mo...
Spring has brought numbers of interesting things to our doorstep, most related to a wetter than normal start to the growing season. Peonies are blooming as never before, columbine have exploded in the partial sun, and the false indigo is ahead of schedule. In short, the perennials are performing better that can be recalled in recent years. The combination of mild weather, cool nights, ample rainfall and a head start on feeding the potted plants has resulted in a visual feast. Another highlight o...
Hay there my friends. What are you doing? Actually, that is a trick question. Notice my misspelling of Hey? That was not a mistake, I meant to refer to the mow it down, bale it up and store it away for winter livestock feeding type of hay. The rest of the trick question is that it is really not a question. I know this is getting a bit confusing so allow me to explain. Most of my friends are folks who are ranchers or farmers. Because of that, I know exactly what they are doing. They, like me,...
Recent larger than normal rainfall amounts spurred weeds and flowers alike to new heights, exceeding their botanical potentials faster and more quickly than normal. The pasture is suddenly knee high, and the ornamentals appear to be healthier and happier than the last two seasons. Hail damage has been minimal thus far; and now you have someone to blame as the issue was first raised here. Purple mustard is thriving, as is the cheat grass to no one’s surprise. The township has begun hauling gravel...
Regular “Under The Wire” readers will have noticed several of my recent columns have mentioned vacations. That is not because Sue and I have been going on so many. In fact, just the opposite is true. We hardly ever find time to travel for fun. Since we seem to be surrounded by folks who do, we have been working on a way we just might be able to pull one off. So far, as close as we have come was a trip to Sue’s hometown of Riverton, Kan., where I got lost on my way to a convenience store and w...
An old axiom supports the premise that “you get what you give.” Many attest to its validity, but sometimes a little more intentionality is called for. When gifts become expectations, then grace ebbs from the equation, sometimes without our awareness. Unfortunately, the prosperity gospel is alive and well within many religious groups, amplified by the notion that if we had just a bit more disposable income that life would suddenly be grand and that God will bless us financially as of an ele...
June 11 will bring additional changes to how antibiotics can be purchased by livestock producers. On this date the Food and Drug Administration Center for Veterinary Medicine (FDA-CVM) discontinued “Over The Counter” purchases of injectable livestock antibiotics from your local feed store, farm supply, CO-OP or any other entity without a veterinary prescription. The rule comes after a 2018 FDA-CVM study on antimicrobial stewardship in veterinary settings. The rule is for medically important antibiotics, those used from both human and ani...
Let me begin this column with a heads up to all my loyal readers. If there is a date, including the month anywhere near the words on this page, I can assure you it was not my hand that put it there. Beginning March 2020, my grasp of time, including what month we are in, has been non-existent. Of course “The Rona” threw us all for a loop in that month. For me, that began a period where one month slipped by and was swiftly and quietly replaced by another. This process continued until, Lo and Beh...
Various metrics all point in the same general direction when it comes to measuring the evolution of the church. For years we depended on membership rolls, bodies in the pews, irrevocable declarations of a saving nature (or so it seemed at the time), numbers of activities offered each week, who threw the best funeral dinners, and the ever-popular cars in the parking lot informal weekly census, fair game for any church, church member or stranger in town for that matter. The desire to best others...
Like all animals, beef cattle need an appropriate amount of minerals to allow for proper body function, lactation and growth. Grazing cattle intake most of their minerals through the forages they eat, but grass and forbs can provide different levels of minerals depending on their growth stage and the soil they grow in. Cattle too have differing levels of mineral requirements depending on their stage of production. There are 17 minerals cattle require. They are divided into macrominerals: calcium (C), chlorine (Cl), magnesium (Mg), phosphorus...
