Crops, trees, impact of recent rains and the Geary County Free Fair were all topics touched on by Geary County Agricultural Agent Chuck Otte during a presentation to the JC Breakfast Optimist Club Wednesday.

Otte stated that “bag worms are everywhere. They can quickly kill cedar trees especially. The bag worms eat anything containing chloroform. “Spinosad” is an effective organic pesticide that can be sprayed to treat for the bag worms.

Otte reported that apple trees may have rusty looking leaves on them. This is a disease called Cedar-Apple Rust. It alternates every other year between apple trees and cedar trees.

Beetles and boars such as the Japanese Beetle and Emerald Ash Boar are prevalent or will become so in the area. The June Beetle loves roses, but will consume everything in sight. The Emerald Ash Boar is coming in this direction. The Boars are usually present for 5-7 years before being detected and they will decimate Ash trees.

Otte said that “the recent long stretch of rain and some flooding has had both positive and negative impact on crops. Some fields were and may still be under water. Some trees that have been submerged will not survive. However, some wheat fields have yielded 110 bushels per acre. If there is rain in the next 10 days , we will have some amazing corn.”

The Geary County Free Fair is July 22-25. Otte said that it is called a Free Fair because unlike some fairs there is no admission charge. Others may have a fee for participation and / or admission.

There will be a Back to School Health Fair at Konza Prairie Community Health Center, 361 Grant Avenue for all students on Friday, August 9th, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

The fee is $20 cash or five canned goods. The Health Fair will include sports physicals, free health screenings, participation by community vendors and there will be food and prizes.

The Land Bank Board has approved an option for Geary USD 475 employees to purchase a vacant lot. City Manager Allen Dinkel said lots will be offered to employees of the school district. “Not just teachers but employees at $1,000 plus closing costs.”

The Land Bank lots are primarily on the northwest side of the city.

The City Commission sitting as the Land Bank Board gave their approval to the idea Tuesday night.

The property tax levy would remain unchanged at 48.115 mills under the proposed 2020 City spending plan approved for publication by the Junction City Commission Tuesday evening. A public hearing on the proposed budget has been scheduled for August 6th.

City Manager Allen Dinkel pointed out that the budget is still under the property tax lid by $400,000. He said the city could remain under it and still increase the tax levy by two and a half mills but they didn’t do it. Dinkel noted that the city is financially responsible and he’s proud of it.

Once the proposed budget is published the tax levy can be lowered but it cannot be increased.

MANHATTAN, KS –  Congratulations to Kim Medvid whose design “Little Apple on the Prairie” was selected as the City of Manhattan flag contest design winner.

According to a media release from the city of Manhattan, a total of 3,021 ballots for the new flag were cast through online and in-person voting. The Little Apple on the Prairie design won with 29% of the votes.

“This has been a good process that generated a lot of community interest,” said Assistant City Manager Dennis Marstall. “It’s clear that people embrace the ‘Little Apple’ nickname and want to celebrate the City’s location in the Flint Hills.”

Artists as young as eight years old and as far away as Sweden participated in the contest, submitting 120 designs for consideration. All of the designs had meaningful symbolism that reflected the spirit of the heartland and Manhattan’s unique heritage. The winning design represents Manhattan as a land of growth and opportunity, with the “Little Apple” rising out of the Flint Hills. The colors of the original design were adjusted and represent the following:

GREEN: fertility of the land, opportunity for growth, and the native grasses of the Flint Hills
BLUE: The Big Blue and Kansas Rivers, peace, and the expansive sky over the prairie
WHITE: Manhattan’s limitless future
The next step will be for the City Commission to consider adopting the voters’ choice at the August 20 meeting. The new flag design will pair with the existing City of Manhattan logo and will be used as one of the symbols for the City. Flags will be flown at City Hall and in other locations around the City.

The monthly Milford Lake bird walk will begin at 8 a.m. Saturday. Participants will meet at the parking lot on the south end of Milford Lake Dam, just across the highway from the Corps of Engineers Office.

This month’s walk will focus on summer resident species and early migrant. The walks usually last about two to three hours and involve moderate walking. If you have binoculars or a bird book bring them.  The next walk will be August 17th. For more information contact Chuck Otte at 238-4161 or 238-8800.