The Iowa State University Extension continues to offer information for Iowa residents affected by flooding.

All kinds of questions come to the extension office at ISU, said Bill Linstrom, associate vice-provost for extension. “There are always questions that come in related to food, and food that is exposed to the flooding process. The use of garden stuff always comes into question.”

People have many questions about what they should do when they have electric and gas appliances affected by flood waters.

Linstrom said farmers have many of the same problems as city-dwellers, including how long food can stay in a basement freezer affected by flood water.

“In addition to that, there are questions that come up relating to whether or not it is necessary to replant [crops],” Linstrom said. “What will happen to fertility of soil because it has been under water?

“We can give them an idea of what they would be talking about in cost, and recognize that some of the initial cost might change. If they had fertilized, that might not need to be done again.”

Linstrom said moisture can affect the quality of hay and other livestock feeds.

Seed companies and fertilizer companies also help farmers after the floods and Linstrom said that he thinks many people are referred to extension by these companies.

“We are not selling anything, and therefore when there is a question that arises, those questions come to us,” he said. “Farmers, by-and-large, accept our appraisal because they know it is unbiased.”

The ISU Extension has offices in every county in Iowa. It maintains a World Wide Web page to answer flood-related questions (http://www.exnet.iastate.edu/Information/Flood).