The scurs were tracking well last week, calling the rain as predicted. Will they be as fortunate this time around? Starting Wednesday, partly cloudy with a slight chance of an evening shower. Highs around 80 and lows near 60. Partly cloudy on Thursday with a moderate chance of an evening shower or thunderstorm. Highs of 80 and lows of 65. Friday, partly cloudy and warmer with a moderate chance of a shower or thunderstorm. Highs of 80 – 85 and lows around 65. Saturday partly cloudy and warmish with a slight chance of a shower or thunderstorm. Highs 85 – 90 and lows near 70. Mostly sunny for Sunday with continued heat and mugginess along with a slight chance of an evening shower or thunderstorm. Highs around 90 and lows close to 70. Mostly cloudy on Monday with some relief from the heat along with a good chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs around 80 and lows of 55 – 60. Remaining mostly cloudy and cooler on Tuesday with highs of 75 – 80 and lows around 65. The normal high for June 10th is 78 and the normal low is 62. The scurs will be lounging beside their cement pond . 

Aside from the surprise .52” of rain at the ranch on Wednesday last week it has remained relatively warm and dry since Saturday. This allowed many fields of corn to be sprayed for weeds under ideal conditions. It was definitely time as some of the weeds that had escaped the digger earlier this spring were large and becoming a concern. Soybean emergence had also been an issue as evidenced by some unevenness in the stands. Fortunately soybeans are fairly resilient and once they shrug off the “uglies” from the iron deficiency chlorosis, they begin to resemble a real crop. Small grains are heading out and alfalfa has benefitted greatly from the rainfall the last part of May. First cutting was disappointing in some places with some eager to blame insects based on their presence at the time of cutting. However, weather after the crop broke dormancy was not always “alfalfa-friendly” and led to slower-than-anticipated growth given the early start. The lack of precipitation from last fall and subsequent low subsoil moisture was not a positive factor either.

This week brought more activity from our feathered friends around the ranch. The young kestrels are approaching the time to fledge from their now extremely messy home. I went down to check on them Sunday night as I have for many weeks now and upon opening the inspection door on the nesting box, one of them hopped out and fluttered about 10’ into the grass below. I closed the door quickly so no more of them were tempted to come out, retrieved the escapee and stuffed it back in the entrance hole. I’ve been keeping a weekly photo record of their progress so the only way to get a photograph was to put the cell phone camera in the hole and snap the picture. It was hard to tell whether they were all in there yet, but judging by how crowded they were, it appears they’re all there. I would expect by next week they’ll be on the wing if the Sunday night’s performance was any indication.

In the yard, we had a female cardinal picking up under the sunflower feeder on Sunday. Cardinals are still a novelty at our place although they have been appearing with greater frequency the past several years as the bushes grow in size. The female orchard oriole has been making an appearance lately with her mate at the jelly feeder. A catbird or catbirds seem to have a taste for jelly along with a house finch or two. Probably the most significant observations involved the bluebirds. On Saturday a female bluebird was seen resting on the eave trough, then flew into the trees by the driveway. On Monday morning, the unmistakable royal blue of the male was spotted going away towards the pasture where there are three bluebird nesting boxes that are possible nesting sites. Will be interesting to see if they’re nesting in one of them or simply passing through. They’re always a treat to see regardless.

The Canada thistle population in the pasture around the yard required some attention. Some had attained a height of nearly 3’ since the May rains. Before going to a graduation Sunday, it was time to do battle. Having purchased some Milestone recently, the conditions were perfect. By the time we returned from the graduation a few hours later, some of them were already starting to writhe in agony. By the next morning they were all in a state of distress. Something about making thistles miserable that satisfies the inner sadist in me.

Sadly the last of the radishes were consumed the other night. They had a pretty good run though, supplying many meals worth and allowing us to share them with several others. Was a good a thing too as the second planting a few weeks later amounted to only some pencil thin roots and tops that bolted. Tomatoes, peppers, string beans and cucumbers were planted quickly Sunday night just before dusk so everything is in with the exception of some sweet corn. The weeds have really taken off with the recent warm temperatures so it will be a full time job to keep them at bay. Once the squash and pumpkins get rolling though there are few weeds that can compete with them. Rotating them around the garden not only helps keep the weeds down, they have the effect of mellowing the soil probably by deflecting some of the pounding rain with their huge leaves. Lord knows we’ve had plenty of hard rains thus far. The sphinx moths continue to work over the beautiful pots and planters Mrs. Cheviot has placed in front of the house while the toads ride shotgun for any flying insects that meet their criteria. All is right with the world…

See you next week…real good then.

NRHEG High School announced its spring sports award winners and senior athletes of the year at the annual ceremony last Thursday in the New Richland gymnasium.

They were:

• Outstanding Female Senior Athlete — Anna Schlaak

• Outstanding Male Senior Athlete — David Lassahn

Baseball

• MVP — Sam Lundberg

• Most Improved — Tyler Sorenson

• Gold Glove — Lucas Meyer

The NRHEG golf teams watched their seasons come to an end with a less-than-impressive showing at the Sub-section 2AA tournament on May 29 at the North Links Golf Course.

The boys came in a disappointing sixth place while the Panther girls finished fifth.

The boys’ team was led by Spencer Hanna and Jake Langlie who shot matching 94s. Sam Grothem was seven shots back at 101. Sam Nafe (105) and Macoy Schwierjohann (112) were the other varsity players.

Josh Baldus of Fairmont was medalist for the tournament with an 80. Andy Aukes (BEA) and Austin Snow (Waseca) were runners-up with 82s.

NRHEG baseball team finishes 18-4

The NRHEG baseball team saw its season come to an unexpected end with a 10-2 loss to St. Peter in the second round of the Section 2A tournament at New Richland’s Legion Field last Friday.

The Panthers — champions of the Gopher Conference — finished the season with a record of 18-4.

You could say the ball just did not bounce the Panthers’ way.

“St. Peter hit the ball very well and found some holes and gaps,” said NRHEG coach Jeff Reese. “Whereas we had had numbers ‘at them’ balls. We would not get the big play or the clutch hit.”

By JESSICA LUTGENS

Contributing Writer

Despite rumors to the contrary, New Richland Drug will not be closing any time in the near future. However, there will be some changes due to increased pressure by Medicare D and other insurance plans to fill prescriptions by mail order and the decreased reimbursement to local pharmacies. Telepharmacy allows pharmacies to operate without a pharmacist in the store, and will be used at New Richland Drug in order for the pharmacy to remain in business. New and emergency prescriptions will continue to be filled in New Richland by Certified Pharmacy Technician Andrew, and a pharmacist will be physically present in the store once a week — usually on a Monday. On the days a pharmacist is not physically present in the store, customers will be given the opportunity to video conference with a real pharmacist where they can express any questions or concerns regarding their prescriptions.

Wagner, Schiltz advance in three events

NRHEG High School has two qualifiers for the 2012 state track and field meet. Carlie Wagner, above, finished first in the high jump and second in the 200-meter dash at Saturday’s Section 2A meet at Mankato West, advancing in both events. T.J. Schiltz, below, finiished first in the 3200 meters to advance in that event. The state track and field meet is Friday and Saturday at Hamline University in St. Paul. (Star Eagle photos by Chris Schlaak)

By JIM LUTGENS

Editor/Publisher

Two NRHEG sophomores are headed for Hamline University. But not for schooling.

Carlie Wagner and T.J. Schiltz will participate in the state track and field meet Friday and Saturday at the St. Paul college.

Wagner made it in two events, the high jump and 200-meter dash. She won the high jump, clearing 5-5, and placed second in the 200 in 28.8 seconds in Saturday’s Section 2A meet at Mankato West High School.

She’ll be joined at state by Schiltz, who won the 3200 section title with a time of 9:58.18, breaking his own school record. Schiltz just missed in the 1600, placing third in 4:37.57.

“All the kids performed well today,” said NRHEG coach Duey Ferber.

The funeral service for Robert Lee Kalbow of Hartland, Minnesota will be 10 a.m. Wednesday, June 6, 2012 at Friedrich Funeral Home, New Richland, MN. Pastor Dennis Frank will officiate. Interment will be in the Freeborn Cemetery. Visitation will be from 4-7 p.m. Tuesday at Friedrich Funeral Home, New Richland, MN and one hour before the service on Wednesday.

Robert died Sunday June 3, 2012 at St. Mary’s Hospital, Rochester, MN.  He was 69 years old.

Ronald Dean “Ron” Reese, age 66 of Blooming Prairie, MN passed away Friday, June 1, 2012 at Good Samaritan Society in Albert Lea, MN. He was born on August 14, 1945 in Waseca, MN to Omer and Dorothy (Worke) Reese. Ron graduated from Blooming Prairie High School in 1963 and served in the U.S. Army from 1963 - 1966.  Ron graduated from Mankato State with a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science and psychology in 1971. He worked most of his life for Bank of America as a stockbroker specializing in insurance mutual funds. Ron married Mary Bolger in Austin, MN and the couple moved to England. Three children were born to this union. The couple was divorced later. He enjoyed golfing and attending family get- togethers. Ron was a member of the American Legion, VFW and Red Oak Grove Lutheran Church.

Jerry Robinson, age 86 of Waseca died on Thursday, May 31, 2012 at the Lake Shore Inn in Waseca.

Born on May 2, 1926 in New Richland, Minnesota he was the son of Donald and Margaret (Collins) Robinson.  He served in the U.S. Army from 1945 until his honorable discharge in 1946.  Jerry married Alice Born on May 8, 1954 at the Evangelical United Methodist Church in Waseca.  He was employed as a trucker for Frodl Trucking and Born Livestock and also worked for the Byron Farm Store in Waseca.  He later was employed by the City of Waseca Street Department for many years until his retirement in 1991. Jerry enjoyed horses and auctions and sharing his sense of humor and quick wit.  He was a member of the Evangelical United Methodist Church, the American Legion, and VFW in Waseca.

George A. Radtke was born on February 22, 1920, to Albert and Louise (Hiepler) Radtke in Madison, MN.  His father was killed in a runaway accident during threshing time when George was 6 years old and he moved with his mother to Ellendale, ND, in 1926.  He completed his elementary and high school education there, graduating in 1939.

George moved to Fargo and managed an oil station while attending NDAC (now NDSU) until 1941, when he was among the first drafted into the Army on December 29, 1941.  He was commissioned to 2nd Lt. in 1942 and also to 1st LT. in the Army Corps of Engineers.  He went overseas in 1943 and took part in the Normandy Invasion, Battle of the Bulge in 1944, and was also present at the fall of Berlin.  He returned to the U.S. after VE Day (Victory in Europe) on July 3, 1945.  George arrived in Minneapolis, MN, on July 9 and a short time later married Eleonore Nieman in Fargo, ND, on July 29, 1945.