Talk of Iowa

Got a "bee in your bonnet?" Fighting a major "computer bug" on your laptop? Insect-themed idioms have found a solid place in our everyday language, and on this horticulture day edition of Talk of Iowa , we're finding out just how that came to be. This hour, Charity Nebbe is joined by Iowa State University Extension horticulture expert Richard Jauron and Iowa State University professor of entomology Donalod Lewis, who has written and researched on the topic of insects in language. In case you...

Whether it brings you into a specific place, period, or just articulates that inexplicable feeling of home, a good book has a special ability to illicit the spirit and energy of a place unlike any other medium. On this hour of Talk of Iowa , a look at books that evoke Iowa as a place and culture. Host Charity Nebbe is joined by Adult Services Coordinator at Iowa City Public Library Maeve Clark, Adult Services Librarian at Carnage-Sal Public Library in Dubuque Mike May, and Professor of...

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the National Trails System, which includes the Lewis and Clark Historic Trail. The trail stretches 3,700 miles from Wood River, Illinois to the mouth of the Columbia River in Oregon and stands as one of only two national historic trails that passes through Iowa. On this edition of Talk of Iowa , host Charity Nebbe talks with Neal Bedlan, Chief of Interpretation of the Lewis and Clark Trail, and Keith Bystrom, an Iowan who traveled the trail for 55 days...

I t’s early November and winter weather has arrived! On this Horticulture Day edition of Talk of Iowa, host Charity Nebbe talks with horticulture specialists Richard Jauron and Cindy Haynes about preparing your yard and garden for winter. They talk co vering the strawberries, prepping the roses, and getting ready to fend off hungry bunnies. Later in the hour, Jauron and Haynes answer listener questions. Strawberries typically need to be covered with 4-5 inches of straw around mid-November....

Kevin "B.F." Burt, one of Iowa's favorite blues musicians, won the International Blues Challenge last year Since then, he's toured all across the country and has just released a new album featuring some heavy hitters from the nation's blues scene. The new record, "Heartland and Soul." was released via the Little Village Foundation's record label, a non-profit record label based out of California. "I submitted nearly 30 songs to the label," Burt says. "We actually recorded 23 of them and then...

Winter can be a sleepy time for gardeners, but it's a great time to start making plans for the trees in your landscape. On this horticulture day edition of Talk of Iowa , host Charity Nebbe gets the lowdown on tree pruning with Jeff Iles, professor and chair of the Horticulture Department at Iowa State University. Later in the hour, Iowa State University horticulture specialist Richard Jauron and DNR Forester Mark Vitosh join to answer listener questions. Early winter is the ideal season to...

Resa Willis spent decades avoiding her high school reunions, but when the 40th reunion rolled around, she caved and decided it was time to go home again, even though her family farm near Little Sioux is long gone. When Willis went home for that reunion, she brought her British husband and a terrific sense of humor, and the result is a collection of memories of growing up in far western Iowa called Farmer's Daughter and I Can Prove It . On this edition of Talk of Iowa , Charity Nebbe talks...

The field of earth science, or geoscience, is expanding, but there aren't enough people qualified for careers in the field. "The geosciences are facing what’s been termed in industry as 'the great crew change,'" says Brad Cramer, associate professor of earth and environmental science at the University of Iowa. "Starting in the 1980s, we reduced the total number of people getting degrees in this field, and we’re going to be facing a shortage of about 80 to 90 thousand trained geoscientists...

Every year in October, thousands of Iowans pay for tickets to stand in line, waiting to be scared. During this hour of Talk of Iowa , Ian Miller of The Slaughterhouse in Des Moines, Mark Fuller of Circle of Ash in Cedar Rapids, and Mark Turczynski of Skellington Manor in Rock Island, join host Charity Nebbe to talk about the care and keeping of Iowa's haunted houses. Miller says that he fell in love with the idea of haunted houses when he was a kid. "I always like to say it's a nightmare...

A running program at the Iowa Medical and Classification Center is helping inmates develop healthy habits, set goals, and push themselves to new heights. During this Talk of Iowa segment, we run a 5k behind bars and then talk with Mark Powers, president of Corridor Running, who has been involved in building the running club at the prison. "As I've grown to learn from working with these individuals, it's like a microcosm of normal society," says Powers about mentoring the runners who are a...

What would you sacrifice to experience a romantic fairy tale in real life? During this hour of Talk of Iowa , host Charity Nebbe talks with Beth Howard, author of Hausfrau Honeymoon: Love, Language and Other Misadventures in Germany , about adjusting to life in Stuttgart and baking pie as a way to get through grief. Howard explains how learning a new language and making sacrifices in her own career reflects the struggle that many women endure when they are in love. “I think every woman...

Alexia Arthurs immigrated to New York from Jamaica when she was 12. It was a difficult transition at such a pivotal moment in her life. During this hour, she talks with host Charity Nebbe about her new book How to Love a Jamaican , a collection of short stories which were partly inspired by her own journey. Then, later in the hour, novelist and Cornell College professor Rebecca Entel joins the conversation to talk about Caribbean literature as its own genre. Her book Fingerprints of Previous...

It was just over a year ago that the #MeToo movement went viral. Many see this as a step forward for women and others who have been victimized, but what does it mean for men? On this edition of Talk of Iowa , Charity Nebbe hosts a conversation on what #MeToo means to men personally, socially, and culturally. Iowa State University student Benjamin Whittington, says he's had ongoing conversations with his peers in the year since #MeToo took off. "I would definitely say I’m a lot more careful,"...

Planting a cover crop in your garden sounds like a wonderful idea, but for some of us, making it happen might be an unfamiliar challenge. On this horticulture day edition of Talk of Iowa , Iowa State University Extension O rganic Specialist Kathleen Delate joins host Charity Nebbe to talk cover crops for the garden and to give a preview of the 2018 Iowa Organic Conference. Later in the hour, Iowa State University Extension Horticulture Specialist Richard Jauron joins to answer listener...

You may love your home now, but is it still going to work for you as you age? In this hour of Talk of Iowa , host Charity Nebbe talks with home improvement expert Bill McAnally and former Iowa State University Extension Housing Specialist Mary Yearns about the importance of considering mobility and accessibility when it comes to aging in one's home. Yearns explains “visit-ability,” or the accessibility of a home or building for visitors across the mobility spectrum. “There are lots of...

As a Grinnell English professor, Ralph Savarese has been connecting with students through literature for many years. As a father, he also discovered that literature and poetry was a way to connect with his son, David James Savarese, who is a poet and essayist. His son is also autistic and non-speaking. The father-son literary connection inspired Savarese to use literature as way to explore how other people with autism think and see the world. The result is the new book, See It Feelingy:...

When should you start talking to kids about sexuality, consent, and safe relationships? “Birth,” says professor Alison Oliver, who teaches courses on human sexuality in the School of Social Work at the University of Iowa. During this hour of Talk of Iowa , we explore how to talk to kids and teens in the #MeToo era. Host Charity Nebbe talks with guests not just about the cultural phenomena that is #MeToo, but also about the issues of power, sexual safety, relational communication, and consent...

In search of the perfect pumpkin this fall? Never fear! We've got advice. During this hour of Talk of Iowa , host Charity Nebbe talks with Richard Jauron of Iowa State University Extension and Aaron Steil of Reiman Gardens in Ames about how to pick, carve, and create the perfect jack o' lantern this fall.

Casey Gerald has written a memoir, "There Will Be No Miracles Here." (Riverhead Books) Gerald was the final speaker in this year's Green Room series, a community-wide educational experiment at the Englert Theatre in Iowa City and a University of Iowa Honors Course taught by Dave Gould. Gerald grew up in poverty in Dallas, went to Yale University on a scholarship and played football there. He then went to the Harvard Business School for an M.B.A. This led him to co-found "MBA's Across...

Bowling is the fastet growing high school sport in Iowa, and it's also growing rapidly at the collegaite level. During this hour of Talk of Iowa , Charity Nebbe talks with Andy Diercks, head coach of the bowling team at Mount Mercy University in Cedar Rapids, and Charla Green, Iowa State’s USBC Bowling Association Manager, about the culture surrounding this sport, as well as the scholarship and social benefits for students. Later in the hour, Bev Van Blair, Executive Director of the Iowa...