The heavy rain and flooding in the Upper Mississippi River this spring has created another problem for the river: shoaling. Shoaling is the result of sediment settling in the river, mainly in channels near locks, causing the water levels there to become shallow. This can create sandbars that would be dangerous for barges to navigate and they could become stuck. Barges need at least a 9-foot draft to navigate safely and when shoaling occurs, the Army Corps of Engineers needs to dredge the area, closing all traffic on either side of the area.

DECATUR, Ill. (DTN) -- I've always been lucky. Well ... I rarely go through a yard or a patch of clover without finding a four-leaf clover. Around one out of 10,000 clovers have four leaves, so I count it as a gift. I also find five-leaf versions routinely and have found up to seven leaves on clovers.