'A million-dollar rain ': Drought-hit Minn. farmer feels ups, downs of passing storm (Brett Hoffman)

 
 Soybean farmer Dean Tofteland smiles at the gift of sudden rainfall on his crops in Luverne, Minn.

 Covering the news occasionally produces unexpected insights, as happened when a recent assignment to document the impact of a corporate meltdown turned into a lesson on the raw realities of farming and the weather, both drought and rain.

 'The garden spot of Minnesota'
As I drove west across the middle of the state, from the airport in Minneapolis to Luverne on Route 212, I passed through low hills covered with corn crops. While many of the nation's farms are grappling with drought, most of the corn plants here appeared lush and green, with only isolated dried-out brown spots near the base of some stalks.

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