Publisher’s Perspective Chad Koenen One of the best ways to judge not only yourself, but your community, is through the eyes of outsiders. Since we typically have an inherent bias through what we experience in our everyday lives, having people from outside of our community come to town can yield some valuable information. It can… Read More

Tucker’s Telegram Tucker Henderson Recently, I was given a tip about some impressive clusters of peonies growing in the wild just a short drive from my home. These peonies were planted many years ago as part of a continuous hedge of flowers spanning from the planter’s property and also across the road into another row of… Read More

By Bev Johnson Master Gardener Now that it is dryer than a camel’s toenails, we either have to water or let everything die. There is a good way and a bad way to water. Start with the vegetable garden. Water the way you always do. Now, using your 6- inch garden trowel, dig a hole 6… Read More

Publisher’s Perspective Chad Koenen There is perhaps no more important phrase in a dad’s arsenal than the phrase “go ask your mother.” Perfecting the delivery of the phrase can take a few years, but when you do, these four words can be the difference between a lengthy “discussion” with a child or staying arms length… Read More

Ask A Trooper Sgt. Jesse Grabow Question: My child will be taking their road test for getting their driver’s license. Do you know what vehicle equipment if required for this? Answer: The Minnesota State Patrol does not oversee these activities. That would be the Driver and Vehicle Services (DVS.) But here is some information from their website and… Read More

By Bev Johnson Master Gardener In a word, DON’T. If you have a dog the size of a Shetland pony, with resulting sized poop, you may be tempted to compost it. After all, it’s free and you have to pick it up anyway. Forget about it!! Both dog and cat manure may carry organisms that can cause… Read More

The Prairie Spy Alan “Lindy” Linda Here’s a question for you: How many coffee cups should one household have? Or need. Or possess? As S. and I combine households, that question about the proper number of cups has arisen. I guess then so has the word “household,” which is one of those odd words that we take for… Read More

Ask A Trooper Sgt. Jesse Grabow Question: I see a lot of vehicles broke down and on the side of the road in the summer months. This is when we have our best weather but I am not sure if people realize how hard the heat can be on a vehicle. Many look like they are on… Read More

The Prairie Spy Alan “Lindy” Linda It’s wood tick season. And it’s doctor season. Wood ticks because this is their time of the year in Minnesota, and doctors because there are new cases of Covid-19 in Minnesota. My nephew—he’s not really a nephew, he is by proper description a second cousin, being the son of a cousin, but… Read More

By Bev Johnson Master Gardener Lilacs are usually tougher than woodpecker lips. They will grow in most any kind of soil and bloom every spring. They seem to thrive on being ignored. Often the only thing left to tell there once was a house out in the country is a lilac shrub blooming all by itself…. Read More