Our family’s heritage farm, known as Sandhill Acres, is located in rural Chelsea, Iowa, and while we seem to be in a constant battle with weeds, another battle takes place nearby along the Iowa River Corridor. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources notes that a program is underway to cut and bale reed canary grass […]
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Tag: Chelsea
Storybook saga: Derecho-damaged library ...
By Cindy Hadish CHELSEA, Iowa — Brad Wolter was still in training for his position as the new Chelsea Public Library director when Iowa was hit by the devastating Aug. 10 derecho. Hurricane-strength winds severely damaged the early-1900s former bank building that housed both Chelsea City Hall and the library, ripping off a portion of […]
Auction signals end of era for family-ow...
By Cindy Hadish BELLE PLAINE, Iowa — Auction-goers here will bid on bits of history from a family-owned business that spanned generations in central Iowa. A multitude of tools, fans, rakes, air compressors, fishing gear and numerous other eclectic items crowd tables and floor space at Weeda Auction Service in Belle Plaine, ready for the […]
Otter Creek Marsh near Chelsea, Iowa, ab...
This item about Otter Creek Marsh from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources hits close to home. Our family’s Heritage Farm is located nearby in rural Chelsea. Recently, we had some of the farm’s bottomland enrolled in the Wetlands Reserve Program, to add to the habitat available on this “migration superhighway.” There is nothing like […]
Practical Farmers of Iowa field day: gri...
CHELSEA, Iowa — They might not be “true” unicorns, but some of the goats raised by Adam Ledvina could pass for the mythical creatures, with a single horn jutting out of their head. Ledvina raises Kiko goats, a variety domesticated from feral goats in New Zealand, on the family farm in rural Chelsea. He shared […]
Rural Iowa parish keeps Czech-flavored f...
NOTE: The 2020 Fall Festival has been canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. CHELSEA, Iowa — Carefully kept records describe dinner donations from parishioners of St. Joseph’s Church for its annual Fall Festival. “Mrs. Anthony Novak: strudel, kolaches, potato salad, cream. Mrs. Jos. Musil: meatloaf, sauerkraut, potato salad. Mrs. John Sichra: loaf of rye bread, […]
Discover unique blend of cultures along ...
(Editor’s note: Check with the establishments on updated hours/closures when planning your trip.) By Cindy Hadish Three distinct cultures intertwine among the quaint towns and picturesque hills of the Iowa Valley Scenic Byway. The 70-mile route meanders through Tama, Benton and Iowa counties across its namesake, the Iowa River valley, in east-central Iowa. At one […]
Chelsea, Iowa, watermelon seeds travel t...
Iowa’s Seed Savers Exchange has deposited many varieties of its heirloom seeds at the international Svalbard Global Seed Vault in Norway, and this year, Chelsea Melon seeds made the trip. My late grandmother, Elsie Musel, provided the seeds from the watermelon to her neighbor, Marvin Kucera, who donated them to Decorah-based Seed Savers Exchange, a […]
Seed Savers Exchange shares grandma’s wa
One of my grandma’s most memorable attributes was her warm smile. Even while grandma, Elsie Musel, wasn’t one to seek the limelight, her kindly smile can now be seen by a wide audience. Decorah-based Seed Savers Exchange features a photo of my grandma on the cover of its new brochure, along with background behind her […]
Photo gallery: 2016 Caucus finish line i...
CEDAR RAPIDS – Candidates for president made their final push this weekend, in front of Iowa’s first-in-the-nation caucuses that will take place Monday, Feb. 1. Republican Marco Rubio and Democrats Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders drew large crowds in Cedar Rapids, while former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley rallied his troops as he met with supporters […]