By IIS Radio SPRINGFIELD – A look back at Illinois weather this year. February 2021 was brutally cold, with many records set all over the state. Spring and summer featured plenty of rainfall in central and southern Illinois, while the northern part of the state remained dry says State Climatologist Trent Ford. “The 2021 northern…… MORE
By IIS Radio SPRINGFIELD – Fall has been warmer than normal in Illinois this year. Even though temperatures were pretty cold in November, a warm September and October pushed fall totals above average says state climatologist Trent Ford. Chicago, Rockford, East Saint Louis, Moline and Quincy are wrapping up one of the top five warmest…… MORE
By USDA SPRINGFIELD – There were 5.2 days suitable for field work during the week ending November 28, 2021. Statewide, the average temperature was 34.5 degrees, 3.2 degrees below normal. Precipitation averaged 0.21 inches, 0.69 inches below normal. Topsoil moisture supply was rated 11 percent short, 76 percent adequate, and 13 percent surplus. Subsoil moisture…… MORE
By USDA SPRINGFIELD – There were 5.1 days suitable for field work during the week ending November 21, 2021. Statewide, the average temperature was 40.6 degrees, 1.3 degrees below normal. Precipitation averaged 0.26 inches, 0.41 inches below normal. Topsoil moisture supply was rated 11 percent short, 74 percent adequate, and 15 percent surplus. Subsoil moisture…… MORE
By Dave Dahl SPRINGFIELD – As you plan your Thanksgiving Day menu, plan on spending a little more than you did last year. The American Farm Bureau Federation says the national average for dinner for ten this year is $53.31, fourteen percent more than last year. The Illinois average is $58.15. “Probably one of the…… MORE
By USDA SPRINGFIELD – There were 4.6 days suitable for field work during the week ending November 14, 2021. Statewide, the average temperature was 46.3 degrees, 3.9 degrees above normal. Precipitation averaged 0.45 inches, 0.32 inches below normal. Topsoil moisture supply was rated 5 percent short, 84 percent adequate, and 11 percent surplus. Subsoil moisture…… MORE
A leader in the agricultural industry in Illinois’ says President Biden’s $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill is “a good piece of legislation.”… MORE
By USDA SPRINGFIELD – There were 4.7 days suitable for field work during the week ending November 7, 2021. Statewide, the average temperature was 41.3 degrees, 5.5 degrees below normal. Precipitation averaged 0.01 inches, 0.79 inches below normal. Topsoil moisture supply was rated 4 percent short, 87 percent adequate, and 9 percent surplus. Subsoil moisture…… MORE
By RFD Radio NORMAL – It’s been quite the run for the Normal West FFA Livestock Judging Team. They’ve gone back-to-back years winning the prestigious American Royal in Kansas City. Lauren Mohr is a team member. “A lot of us have grown up around livestock and high quality livestock so we kind of get that…… MORE
By USDA SPRINGFIELD – There were 1.2 days suitable for field work during the week ending October 31, 2021. Statewide, the average temperature was 50.0 degrees, 1.6 degrees below normal. Precipitation averaged 2.35 inches, 1.73 inches above normal. Topsoil moisture supply was rated 1 percent very short, 4 percent short, 49 percent adequate, and 46…… MORE
By Mike Matejka Because of COVID, there is no Labor Day Parade this year. It’s always a great event for our everyday workers to march proudly down the street and enjoys the festive crowd. If there had been a parade, this year’s Labor Day theme was to be “150 years of struggle: your right to vote.” …
By Mike Matejka As President Donald Trump threatens to send federal marshals into Chicago, over the objections of Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, recall another Illinois Governor who protested the incursion of armed federal personnel into the city. Those federal troops, rather than calming, escalated the situation, leading to deaths and violence. Illinois poet Vachel Lindsay…
By Mike Matejka Our nation is at a unique watershed in human relations. African-Americans have been killed too many times in the past before George Floyd, but the response to this man’s death is international and all-encompassing. I was a grade-schooler during the Civil Rights 1960s. I watched Birmingham demonstrators hosed and the Selma – Montgomery…
Looking around our community, when we say employer, most will respond to State Farm, Country, or Illinois State University. We too often forget those who are building our roads, serving our food, or our public employees. COVID-19 has made us more aware of the risk. Going to work every day for some people means…