By Bill Anderson

The thunderstorm that rolled through at about sun-up on Sunday, July 15, deposited .25 of an inch of rain in Norbert Kulzer’s rain gauge and .2 of an inch in the gauge of his next-door neighbor, Roger Pearson, and brought along some cooler, drier air in its wake. Norbert and Roger have both noticed an interesting development in their lawns this Summer, the presence of an abundant crop of volunteer corn growing in the bluegrass. For quite a few years, Roger has been supplying the local squirrels with several cobs of ear corn each week. The squirrels, being conservative North Dakotans who have experienced hard times, or think that they might, don’t eat all of the corn, but save some of it by burying it in the ground, “squirreling it away,” so to speak. This year, with the abundant precipitation and warm weather of June and July, the squirrels’ corn caches have all sprouted, providing Roger and Norbert with added incentives to mow their lawns on a regular basis. Corn is a grass, though, so as long as moisture and temperature allow, it will keep coming back. The squirrels have not indicated whether or not they have signed up for multi-peril crop insurance or for the Federal Farm Program. It’s pretty certain that their 2018 corn crop will end in disaster, though, but Roger says not to worry. There’s going to be plenty of ear corn this Fall, and he’ll keep on supplying it as long as the squirrels stay out of his attic.

Weather conditions aren’t so great for growing crops everywhere, it seems. Rolf Odberg of Halden, Norway, a cousin of the Anderson family of this community, reports that this Summer has been the hottest and driest in southern Norway and Sweden in more than 70 years. Not since 1947 have the farmers of that region experienced a total failure of the hay crop, but it has happened this year. Norway and Sweden have numerous small farms, and most of them rely on dairy production for a substantial portion of their income. No hay equals no milk, and Rolf reports that some farmers there have been forced to sell their cows on the slaughter market due to the hay shortage. The increased supply of beef on the local market has depressed meat prices, too, so the farmers’ woes have become even more dire. Fortunately for the farmers of Norway and Sweden, their Viking ancestors homesteaded the island of Iceland, out in the North Atlantic, more than a thousand years ago, and their Icelandic cousins are harvesting a bumper hay crop this year. The Icelanders are selling their surplus hay to their Norwegian and Swedish brethren, rescuing the dairy farms of southern Norway and Sweden, and proving once again that nothing that happens is so bad that someone can’t get some good out of it. Thanks to Rolf for the report. Mr. Odberg and members of his family have visited in Rutland several times in the past few years, most recently for family reunions in 2014 and 2017. Ms. Stephanie Watson of Rogers MN, a granddaughter of the late Rudy & Edna Anderson of this community, is planning to be visiting at the Odberg home in Norway at the end of July, Rolf reports.