The Country Today from Eau Claire, Wisconsin • 9

fcWG Today SQCiilQH July 17,1996 Paqe B1 Everyone needs a hometown to store up their memories 1 'saief5r- By jonnw. White Eagle River (Vilas County) The man is poor who has no hometown. You need a hometown to store away your memories and your dreams. If you have no hometown, if nowhere there is a place where you belong and that belongs to you, then memories float aimlessly in time. What you need to pin down memories is a tree-lined street you walked down as a kid, or an old house that once was home.

You need people who call you by name and who see a little boy standing behind the man you are now. This is a hometown. So I am home again and the streets I walk are the streets I walked when I was a boy in Rockton, Wis. Most of the buildings I knew so welf then are now gone, but in my mind's eye they are still there. I clearly see Adler's Saloon, with a dance hall upstairs, which was about half a block from our home.

At every opportunity, when I could get a lead on Ma, I visited the saloon, much to her chagrin. I don't think I went there for a nip but, rather, to view the upright slot machines, which made noises and flashed lights. Across the street from the saloon was the blacksmith shop. My brothers and I spent lots of time there watching the blacksmith, Jean Marshall, shoe horses, of yesteryear The Country Yesterday Here's how the old Bangor Cheese Co. appeared back in and buggy" days.

The family of the operator often lived in the same building. This photo from the Bangor Historical Society had originally been contributed by Mr. and Mrs. Nick Schroeder. Mother eventually came looking for me 1 was sitting on the front Steps ot the store, eating chocolates at a great rate.

To say that Mother was displeased is probably the understatement of the year. Another house I remember well is the so-called Randolph House, across the street from the community hall, where my oldest sister was born. What I'd like to vdb is go up on the front porch of this house, open the door, and call out, "Ma, I'm home!" But you don't dare push your dreams too far. You CAN go The school yard was only a little over a block south of our home past the saloon, but when Mother took me there to start the first grade, it seemed miles away. As if this was not enough to scare me to death, the teacher assigned me to a double seat, with a girl as a partner! I didn't recover from my fear of girls for some 20 years.

A half-block south of the school was McVey's store. I remember well the time Mother sent me there with a quarter to buy some clothespins. The temptation for chocolates, with filled centers, was too great, and when home again; the fellow was wrong when he said you couldn't. You can go home again, only just. "Down Memory Lane" is reprinted, with permission of the publisher, from University of Wisconsin-Extension 's "We Were Children Then, Volume II," a collection of Yarns of Yesteryear-Contest entries published in 1976.

Now out of print, it and Volume I are available in most Wisconsin public libraries. Stories and photos also can be subnlitted to: The Country Today Yarn, Box 570, Eau Claire, WI 54702. river. He held her up and eventually was able to wade ashore with Aunt Rose in his arms. He carried her home through the pasture some three-quarters of a mile.

The rescue proved that he was a worthy representative of the early Vikings. We used to go to the cemetery, only a few feet away, to visit the graves of our ancestors and neighbors. Some people are afraid to visit cemeteries, but we weren't. It always seemed to me that there were friendly spirits there who were pleased to hear the voices of little people. make plowshares and so on.

Sometimes he let us work the bellows for the forge, and we thought he was wonderful. Several years later, I read "The Village Blacksmith" by Longfellow, and there was an accurate description of Jean. A block west of the black 1 smith shop was the cheese factory. We kids made many trips there to ask for curds, which generally came out as "turds," much to the glee of the genial cheesemaker, Blaine Kennedy. He sat us down and gave us curds and coarse salt, our manna from heaven.

One-half block north of the blacksmith and about halfway to the cemetery was the Newcomb House (so-called because it was owned by Burt Newcomb) where we lived when I was a small boy. Many things happened while we lived here. For instance, a cyclone suddenly hit our town and we were frightened! It was dark as night and the air was full of flying debris shingles, boards, limbs. The winds were fierce and made monstrous noises. Every time the tempo of the wind increased, our house seemed to rise and then it would settle back on the foundation.

When the holocaust was over, we were limp. The inside of the house was full of water that had come in around the windows and doors. A short 2 miles away, the winds struck Uncle Charley Ericson's farm, blew down the barn and killed many cattle and horses. A great tragedy indeed! Uncle Charley (who was really my dad's Uncle Charley) was some man. One time, he and Aunt Rose came to Rockton, via horse and buggy, to do some shopping.

On the way home, the young horse became frightened crossing the bridge across the Kickapoo river and bolted down the bank into the river. At this point, the water was deep and turbulent, and how they survived is a miracle. Uncle Charley, who must have been in his 60s, swam and struggled until he caught up with Aunt Rose, more than a hundred yards from where they went into the 000 IS U-Extensiorjublication A2508 Break out the cultivator More tires pay off Now that your haylage is in the silo, make sureyou keep as much as you can for feeding. Wouldn't you be upset if you discovered that your chopper operator blew 1 acre of haylage back onto the ground for every 10 you had him chop? Kansas State University trials with haylage in bunker silos showed that covered bunkers averaged 33.8 percent greater recovery from the top 3 feet when covered. If you have a 9-foot-high bunker, that averages out to about 10 percent more from the whole silo.

If haylage is worth $35 per ton, you save $3.50 per ton by covering it. If your stack is 20 feet high, you still save $1.75 per ton. The largest incentive not to cover bunker silos is having the plastic blow off in a few months! What a waste! All the time and effort and mess. yet the oxygen is still leaking into the silo. Taking the time to put tires close together and sealing off the ends will pay off." A New York study found that placing tires closer together affects haylage quality.

In the study, silos covered and held down with few tires (6.5 tires per 100 square feet) had more bound protein than silos with many tires (21 tires for each 10- by 10-foot section of plastic). For every 1,000 tons of haylage, the difference amounted to nearly 7,000 more pounds of protein dry matter. It would take 8.1 tons of 48 percent soybean meal for each 1,000 tons of haylage stored about $2,000 at today's prices to replace the lost protein. Chuck Schwarteu, Wabasha County, agent Weed pressure is beginning to intensify due to lack of crop canopy this year. As a result, consider that oft-forgotten piece of agricultural equipment (perhaps canopied by weeds!) the cultivator.

If you look at the herbicide labels, the recommended rates are almost always listed in conjunction with a timely cultivation. While cultivating certainly ranks right up there at the top of the list of most boring jobs, it is well worth the time and effort. Along with improved weed control, you'll aerate the soil and allow for better moisture absorption by plants, netting higher profits per acre at harvest time. i Another suggestion for this year and the next is to make a crop "game plan" well in advance of planting. Make mental and written notes of crop weed and disease problems this year and check with a crop consultant regarding appropriate, cost-effective control measures.

Life is so much easier for a producer, a farm supplier and a custom operator if a weed control program is outlined with a couple alternate plans as conditions dictate. Dwight Swenson, Jackson County agricultural agent Sweep for leafhoppcrs The sweep nets should be flying in alfalfa fields. The potato leafhopper is here and the alfalfa plant bug is above threshold in "many fields in Houston County tn southeastern Both pests are silent yield and quality robbers of alfalfa. Since they are sucking insects, yield and quality are reduced without obvious symptoms. Once you see the yellowing, wrinkling and stunting, it's too late.

Don't let your hay crop be stolen right before your eyes. For more information on scouting techniques and threshold levels, contact your county Extension office. Sweep nets are available for purchase at the Houston County Extension Office for $16. Bruce Christensen, Houston County, ag agent Saturated soils a problem Saturated soils have raised the potential for disease problems in corn and soybeans. While there is nothing we can do to stop the problem this year, field scouting "will help you identify those fields with a problem, evaluate varietal resistance to these pests and plan a strategy of resistant varieties and additional seed treatments for next year if necessary.

Pythium and rhizoctonia fungi are already well-established in area fields. Given temperature and moisture conditions, there's also the potential for a serious phytophthora problem in soybeans. There are several reasons to carefully monitor fields. First, corn yield is tied closely to population. Pythium caused problems both this year and last year in corn, and yield losses can be significant.

Although soybean yields are not as influenced by population, top yields require full stands. So, while 40 to 45 bushels per acre may be adequate, 50 bushels will provide significantly more income and is "an attainable goal. Identifying the problem now can help determine which varieties are better able to resist infection, and there are significant differ-. ences. Additionally, consider buying seed corn treated with a protective fungicide such as Apron.

Recent research suggests that Captan alone is not as effective against these diseases. When scouting fields, identify such seedling blights as pythium by shorter, less vigorous piants. One farmers described it as looking like the fertilizer was shut eff on the planter. Roof lesions are often visible and a slight discoloration in the first one or two nodes is evident when slicing the corn plant lengthwise. Later a wide variation in plant height is evident.

Two plants next to each other may have a 2-foot or more height differential. The only indication of early infections may be missing plants. If phytophthora establishes itself in beans, the symptoms will be apparent. Young plants are very susceptible and die quickly. Older plants die more gradually or have limited plant vigor.

Initial symptoms are a progressive yellowing and wilting of leaves from the bottom to the top of the plant. Dead leaves generally remain attached for a week or more. Dead or dying plants have a brown discoloration of the stem extending upward from the soil line. Jim Schmidt, Jefferson County crops and soils agent Top-dressing alfalfa Top-dressing the alfalfa stand is a sound practice since alfalfa is noted as b'eing a "surface feeder." Top-dressing should be done on an annual basis, but when? Some farmers top-dress after first crop, some after second crop and some in fall. 1- It is best to fertilize the stand right after the first or second crpp.

This allows the fertilizer to be used to better build root health and reserves for the winter. Fertilizer nutrients are noHost with fall application. However, it doesn't help the stand to prepare for winter. Neil Broadwater, Winona County, ag agent Spring tough on trees, shrub "We must have been married a long time, as we are on our second bottle of Worcestershire Sauce!" Recent weather has been very conducive for the development of bacterial blight, particularly on lilac, mock orange and forsythia. Oaks, especially white and bur oaks, have been hit hard by oak tat- ters.

Trees have sparse foliage due to late frost as the leaves were -emerging. Many people have called, wondering if something is eating their oaks. Reports also have come in concerning the same condition on hackberry trees. In most cases the lacy foliage Observed by homeowners, nursery growers and others is caused by our baffling spring weather. The tatters appear to be distributed from Dodge to Walworth counties in the east to Grant and Lafayette counties in the west The most severe symptoms are being from southern and western Dane County, where of the white oak leaves are reduced to shortened midribs with very little additional leaf tissue.

The most heavily damaged trees are producing new foliage. 7 II or-furtlierJriformaiion consult With francis steiner retired dark county ag ed instructor "Deciduous Tree Disorder Springtime Weather Injury to DATCPCoopefative Pest Survey Bulletin.