By Jessica Carlson OTC Master Gardener Starting seeds indoors is one of the most practical ways Minnesota gardeners can make the most of a short growing season. In USDA Zone 4a, we typically have about 110 to 120 frost-free days, often stretching from mid-May to mid-September. That limited window makes planning ahead essential, especially for warm season… Read More

The Prairie Spy Alan “Lindy” Linda I learned to speak Appliance way back, right after the U.S. Army sent me back from Vietnam on an early release to attend college. I had three days to get from Quang Tri, Vietnam, to Iowa State University and get enrolled. I luckily found a place to live. It was a… Read More

Ask A Trooper Sgt. Jesse Grabow Question: Hi Sgt Grabow, I took my driver’s training course many years ago.   One thing I remember from my training is the steps that goes into making a right-hand turn, including: 1. Looking to my right to make sure no one/nothing is there. 2. Putting on my right turn signal. 3. Looking again for… Read More

The Prairie Spy Alan “Lindy” Linda “Death cleaning.” A recent article that was so labelled was about what we old farts leave behind us for our children to take care of. Clean up. Oh, sure: We get old and talk a good fight about getting rid of the stuff that has accumulated around us–Okay, let me change… Read More

Henning Happenings Chad Koenen The older we get the more we forget about how big of a deal events like youth night and playing at halftime of a varsity basketball game can be in the life of a kindergarten or fifth grade child. There are sleepless nights, planning what to wear before and after the… Read More

Ask A Trooper Sgt. Jesse Grabow Question: I heard about a thing called “Vanessa’s Law” the other day and I wasn’t quite sure what it was all about. I know it has to do with new or young drivers. Answer: Vanessa Weiss was killed just days before her 16th birthday in May 2003. In her memory, Vanessa’s Law was passed… Read More

Thank you to the officer and ambulance on Dec. 17 for getting here so quickly when Jim had his heart attack. He is doing well at home now. God Bless You. Jim and Shirley Loken

By Tim Rova Guest Op-Ed For more than 25 years, the Roadless Rule has quietly achieved something extraordinary: protecting our national forests while keeping them open to the public. I know this not just as someone who values these lands, but as someone whose life has been shaped by them.   Since 2001, this policy has protected… Read More

The Prairie Spy Alan “Lindy” Linda I squinted and peered out past the dark V-shaped laughing gas mask that pressed so suffocatingly down upon my nose. All I could see, looming over me, were the arc-welder blue eyes of the dentist who was at a frightening pace removing tooth enamel with which I had become very attached. The… Read More

Ask A Trooper Sgt. Jesse Grabow Question:  I listened to your radio show the other day and you were talking about fatal crashes were lower last year, what was the break down on the numbers? Answer: In 2025, Minnesota saw a significant improvement in road safety, recording 370 traffic-related deaths. This marks the lowest fatality count since 2019… Read More