Columns
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistAugust 03, 2021August is the month to thin or transplant German bearded iris and peonies. Dividing fern leaf peonies is a bit more complicated than regular peonies in that they have a “neck” between the eye of next year’s growth and the tuber. Just cutting into the clump with a spade will often ruin a lot of the potential new divisions because of the way they intertwine. The safest way to divide fern peonies is…
By Scott Rall, outdoors columnistAugust 03, 2021The headline of the Star Herald a few weeks back announced that a nearby community’s drinking water had levels of magnesium that were five times higher than what was safe for infants. It really doesn’t matter where in the state you live, this is becoming a far too frequent headline. There is a very old saying that “whiskey is for drinking and water is for fighting,” and water issues are now one…
By Brenda Winter, columnistJuly 27, 2021My husband, Jim, has been telling people that we celebrated our 35th wedding anniversary last week by “getting a room” in Orange City, Iowa. Then he slyly adds, “a hospital room.” (Long story. Sanford and Avera are “out of network” for our insurance.) It all started two weeks ago with what I thought was heartburn. A week later, the “heartburn” returned with a vengeance. I was hot. I was cold. I…
By Rick Peterson, general managerJuly 27, 2021Just when you’re about to give up on people in general, something happens and you realize there are still good people out there … more than we realize. As strange as what you’re about to read may seem, it really happened. A week or so ago on a Saturday, Mary and I thought we would take our side-by-side to Rowena, South Dakota, to the junk fest. We were going to zigzag our way over there, and we…
By Betty Mann, president, Rock County Historical SocietyJuly 27, 2021The following appeared in The Rock County Herald on Feb. 22, 1935. Birthday Ball Shows $157.15 Net Proceeds Total Receipts From Sale of Over 800 Tickets, $215,10; Funds Will be Used for Health Activities A financial report covering receipts and disbursements for the President Roosevelt birthday ball, held in Luverne on January 30th, was presented yesterday by F. A. Leicher, treasurer for the…- By Scott Rall, outdoors columnistJuly 27, 2021Every time the United States Department of Agriculture announces additional acres for the CRP program, sportsmen and women across the country cheer. The federal Conservation Reserve Program pays farmers to take marginal cropland out of production and plant it to native grass and flower cover. Contracts range from 10-15 years with rental rates as high as $350 per acre per year and as low as $42…
By Lori SorensonJuly 20, 2021Our sports reporter is leaving the Star Herald to move with his wife to Portland, Oregon. It’s a beautiful part of the country where they met each other and where their close friends live. And, he said, “We’d like to do some things while we’re still young and before we have children.” He assured me he’s not leaving because his editor got after him about missing box scores and photos with feet…
By Troy Christianson, Minnesota State PatrolJuly 20, 2021Question: I junked two vehicles about 30 days ago and have only received one "Junk Certificate" in the mail. I contacted the DVS with the VIN # in question and they have no record of the vehicle being junked and told me to contact the repair shop. I contacted the repair shop that I mailed the signed title to, and they said they have taken care of it. I do not want to get into any sort…
By Betty Mann, president, Rock County Historical SocietyJuly 20, 2021The following appeared in The Rock County Star-Herald on April 7, 1949. County Public Health Nurse Would Cost Residents Estimated 40 Cents Per Person Maximum Annual Outlay For Program Would Be $5,000, According to Report Cost of maintaining a public health nurse in Rock county will average 40 cents per person per year, it was announced here Friday night. A meeting, arranged for by the Luverne…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistJuly 20, 2021Japanese beetles … they’re back and they’re hungry. I saw the first of these pests on my rose blossoms last week. Last summer I fought them on my roses, my zinnias, my beans and my raspberries. Japanese beetles (Popillia japonica) are small insects that carry a big threat. They do not discriminate when it comes to what types of plants they feed on, though they do have favorites (like roses.) In…
By Scott Rall, outdoors columnistJuly 20, 2021With the increase in popularity of off-road recreational vehicles, I am seeing more and more side-by-sides running around the counites where I live. The units I am referring to are like 4-wheel-drive golf carts. Polaris Rangers and others made by Arctic Cat, Yamaha and Bombardier are all commonly seen in southwest Minnesota. I have seen many of these units that have had the off-road tires removed…
By Mavis Fodness, reporterJuly 13, 2021For decades this weekly space has featured personal reflections from our editorial staff. The authors have shared various topics and experiences, and some have talked about cancer — either their own personal battles or those of family members. I’ve read their words, sometimes through tears of joy for the author’s triumph, and sometimes with deepest empathy at the loss of life. My logical self…
By Rick Peterson, Tollefson Publishing general managerJuly 13, 2021Mary keeps telling me that I need to stop getting so upset about things I can’t control and take some pleasure in the small things in life. So, with that in mind and as I was making my morning toast, I was lucky enough to be at the end of a loaf a bread, and there was the crust. The little things in life don’t get much smaller, so I stop to enjoy the crust. When I was growing up, the crust was…
By Betty Mann, president, Rock County Historical SocietyJuly 13, 2021The following appeared in The Rock County Herald on March 31, 1949. Monday Was Pay Day For National Guardsmen They’re Not Phoney So Don’t Pass Up $2 Bills Some over 1,000 two-dollar bills will be in circulation here during the next few days and weeks. And there’s nothing phoney about them either. The bills represent the quarterly payroll to members of the Luverne National Guard unit, who…
By George Bonnema, Luverne HorticulturalistJuly 13, 2021Summer-blooming spireas have pretty much finished their early bloom cycle. A light shear now will remove those dead flower heads, and within a couple of weeks they will put on a new crop of foliage that will look as bright and fresh as they did in the spring. … Wish a hair cut would do that for me! Rain over the weekend was another huge blessing, especially the fact that it was more widespread. I…
By Scott Rall, outdoors columnistJuly 13, 2021It is not very often that legislators call me. I call them regularly, but total solar eclipses are more common than a legislator calling me. About 20 years ago Sen. Jim Vickerman, a gentleman I really respected, called me about wolves, a subject that hardly ever comes up in the ag land zones of Minnesota. Wolves have been listed, then delisted, then listed again about a half dozen times over the…
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