They’re raring to go!

Area farmers, in a sense, have had an almost perfect “preseason.”Moisture content in their fields is abundant. This April, unlike last year’s, was snow free. And soil temperatures have warmed nicely.“We’re going into this planting season with a ton of optimism,” ISU Extension agronomist Terry Basol said on Wednesday, “because the conditions are so good for planting. It’s just a start obviously, but we couldn’t be in any better position right now.”Farmers in and around Chickasaw County have been able to do most of their pre-planting field work and Basol said he expects the planting season to shift into high gear next week.“I think if the rain holds off, we’re going to see guys out there this week yet even,” he said. “There’s always the ‘first-in-the-neighborhood-guys’ who are itching to get out, and if the weather cooperates, we could see some guys out [today] and over the weekend.”— For more on this story, see the April 26 New Hampton Tribune.