Flower show blooms at fair

CNJ staff photo: Liliana Castillo Encanto Garden Club vice president Jacquie Wuest, right, said she hopes the club’s booth at the Curry County Fair will encourage horticulture. Also pictured are Elsie Dean, center, and Barbara Voges, left.

An array of flowers from ageratums to zinnias will be on display behind refrigerated glass cases in the fairground’s Home Arts Building next week at the Encanto Garden Club’s flower show.

Every year the show has an average of 30 to 50 people who bring in entries, according to club vice president Jacquie Wuest.

The show is one of the 10 exhibits of the Curry County Fair’s Home Economics Division.

Aside from gardening and flower arrangement, the division features home crafts such as baking, needlework and photography.

Wuest said the booth promotes horticulture — the art of growing flowers — and hopes people are encouraged to pick up gardening.

“I think it’s just fun for people to enter and compete,” she said.

Wuest said club members will be on hand to help first-time exhibitors with their entries.

Club President Barbara Voges said there’s more to a flower show entry than just plucking a flower from the ground.

Voges said previous entries included plants and flowers with bugs and ones that were plucked from the ground and still had dirt on them.

“People don’t realize you don’t just (submit) a specimen (straight from the garden),” she said. “You have to plan it out.”

Voges said entries must be washed and healthy.

Things to know about the flower show:

• Flower show rules are listed in the Curry County Fair book available at the ag extension office and the Fairgrounds office.

• Exhibitors can enter as many categories but are limited to one entry, according to the fair book.

• The show has two divisions: The adult division and the junior division, for exhibitors 18 years old and younger.

• Entries for the flower show will be accepted Monday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Entries will be judged the following day.

• Prizes are $4 for first place, $2.50 for second place and $1.50 for third place.

Schedule of Events for Monday

(Schedule subject to change without notice)

• 6 a.m. to noon — Junior Livestock entries accepted

• 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. — Home Arts entries accepted, Home Arts Building

• 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. — Flower Show entries accepted, Home Arts Building

• 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. — Agriculture exhibits accepted, Agriculture Building

• 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. — 4—H, FFA poultry and rabbits entries accepted, Poultry and Rabbit Barn

• Noon — Weigh and pregnancy check dairy heifers

• 3 p.m. — Weigh and classify lambs

• 6 p.m. — Weigh and classify swine

• 6 p.m. — Agriculture and Home Arts Buildings closed for entry processing and judging

• 6 p.m.-10 p.m. — Commercial exhibits open

• 5 p.m. — Puppetmobile, roaming act

• 6 p.m. — Let’s Pretend Pirate Adventure, Midway area

• 6:30 p.m. — Barrel Race, Mounted Patrol Arena

• 7 p.m. — Puppetmobile, roaming act

• 8 p.m. — Chain saw artist, Midway Area

• 8 p.m. — The Granpa Cratchet Show, Midway Area

• 8 p.m. — Keeson Bell, Entertainment area

• 8 p.m.-midnight — DJ, Under the Grandstand

8:30 p.m. — Let’s Pretend Pirate Adventure, Midway area

9 p.m. — Fireworks

9 p.m. — Puppetmobile

10 p.m. — Chain saw artist, Midway area