By Darrell Blackwelder
For the Salisbury Post
SALISBURY —The Rowan County Fair Association members, along with fair volunteers, met earlier this week to prepare for the 60th annual Rowan County Fair.
Even though the fair is a month away, it’s not too early for those who want to enter exhibits to begin planning and determining their entries. Fortunately, the recent cooler weather provided a needed respite for gardeners that want to enter with horticultural entries.
Garden Exhibits and Fruit (Department C in the catalog) offers various categories for almost every fruit and vegetable suitable for growing in Rowan County. There are categories for most unusual fruit and most unusual vegetable and any other vegetable. This also offers a separate Division for Junior Horticulture entries. It’s open to youth in Rowan County less than 20 years of age.
Flowers are also a popular area of interest (Department D) and offers categories in potted plants, cut flowers, hanging baskets and flower arrangements. Junior horticulturists may also enter with the same categories as the adults.
Those with productive vegetable gardens and fruits may want to consider placing entries in Food Preservation (Department F). The shelves will be a virtual rainbow of jewel-toned jars of canned food items, jellies and preserves.
The Rowan County Master Gardener Volunteer Association, 4-H Clubs, along with local farm agencies and high school vocational agriculture programs, will have display booths in the Exhibition Hall located at the center of the fairgrounds.
Fair exhibits, along with educational booths, provide citizens the opportunity to observe the agricultural impact in Rowan County.
Below is information concerning entering an exhibit in the Rowan County Agricultural Fair:
• All entries must be entered on an official entry blank which can be found in the 2011 Rowan County Fair catalog and online at http://rowancountyfair.org/getmedia/d1e9f36c-8357-40e3-8211-2b070c83b013/Entry-Blank_11.aspx
• Entry forms are due no later than Friday, Sept. 9. The official entry forms can be turned in to Cooperative Extension at the Agriculture Center on Old Concord Road in Salisbury or faxed at 704-216-8995. Entries can also be mailed in advance to 2011 Rowan County Fair, P.O. Box 66, Salisbury, NC 28145-0066.
• Exhibits are accepted from 2-6 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 18.
• Judging begins at 9 a.m., Monday, Sept. 19.
• Entries and exhibits will be released on Sunday, Sept. 25 from 2-4 p.m.
Hard copies of the 2011 Rowan County Fair Catalogs can found at Cooperative Extension Service on Old Concord Road in Salisbury, The Salisbury Post, the Rowan Public Library and various businesses in Rowan County.
The Rowan County Fair begins Monday, Sept. 19 and runs through Saturday, Sept. 24. The fair is located on Julian Road just east of I-85. More information about the Rowan County Fair can be found online at http://www. rowancountyfair.org/
Darrell Blackwelder is county director, Rowan County Center, N.C. Cooperative Extension; call 704-216-8970 or email deblackw@ncsu.edu.
www.rowanmastergardener. com
rowan.ces.ncsu.edu
www.rowanextension.com