►ALL STATIC EXHIBITS MUST HAVE RECEIVED A PURPLE RIBBON AT THE COUNTY FAIR TO ADVANCE TO THE STATE FAIR.
RANGE MANAGEMENT
Department D
Premium Schedule B
The purpose of this category is to help 4-H members identify and collect range plants. In addition, 4-H members will learn the basics of range management, and Nebraska’s range. Through the creation of range boards 4-H members will become more procifient in knowledge of Nebraska’s range.
All static exhibits must have received a purple ribbon at the county fair to advance to the State Fair.
SHOW WHAT YOU DID & LEARNED - All exhibitors will show evidence of their personal field experiences, study or observations that relate to their exhibit. This helps judges understand what the 4-H'er did and learned in the process that led to the exhibit.
PROPER CREDIT - Show proper credit by listing the sources of plans or other supporting information used in exhibits.
WHOSE EXHIBIT? - The exhibitor's name, county and age must be on the back or bottom of all displays.
WILDLIFE & WILDLIFE LAWS - "Animal" or "wildlife" in the following classes includes wild fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, or mammals. Please make sure you are following all appropriate PROJECT MATERIALS - Related project booklets include Exploring Your Environment Series, 4-H Shooting Sports, Amphibians, Bird Behavior (EC 5-93-81), Fishing for Adventure Project Manuals, Wildlife Conservation (4-H 125), Geology, and Outdoor Adventure. Other resources include: Outdoor Skills: Learning Science in the Outdoors series (Science Signature Outcome Program) outdoornebraska.gov/afterschool/and www.whep.org.
BOARD AND POSTER EXHIBITS - Mount all board exhibits on 1/4" plywood, Masonite, or similar panel no larger than 24” high by 24" wide. Poster exhibits should be on regular poster sheets, no larger than standard size (22" x 28" ) but half size, 22" x 14", is recommended.
Scoresheets, forms, contest study materials, and additional resources can be found at https://go.unl.edu/ne4hconservation-wildlife-shooting.
Premier 4-H Science Award is available in this area at State Fair. Please see State Fair General Rules.
RANGE MANAGEMENT
DEPARTMENT D
Premium Schedule B
The purpose of this category is to help 4-H members identify and collect range plants. In addition, participants will learn the basics of range management, and Nebraska’s range. Through the creation of range boards 4-H’ers will become more proficient in knowledge of Nebraska’s range. For more resources and materials in this category refer to the resource section at the bottom of the page.
- Each exhibit must be properly identified with Unit and Class.
- All plant displays and display covers must be the result of the current year’s work.
- Plant identification and lists of appropriate plants in each category (grasses, forbs, shrubs, and grass-like plants) can be found in the Range Judging Handbook and Contest Guide (EC150, Revised July 2024), Common Grasses of Nebraska (EC170), and Common Forbs and Shrubs of Nebraska (EC118).
- The purpose of these exhibits is to demonstrate to the public the benefits from the study and application crop, weed, range and soil sciences to solving problems in management, conservation, sustainability and environmental protection.
- For guidelines on specific projects, refer to appropriate project manuals. Premier 4-H Science Award is available in this area. Please see General Rules for more details.
RANGE MANAGEMENT
Department D—Section 330
Books (Classes 1-6). For books, plants must be mounted on sheets that are no larger than 14 inches wide by 14 inches high. Plants should be glued rather than taped and the mounts should be protected with a clear cover. Proper plant mount should include root as well as stem and leaf tissue. Exhibits will be judged based on completeness of plant mount, accuracy of identification, labeling, neatness and conformation to project requirements. Each completed mount must have the following information (see example below) in the lower right corner of the mounting sheet.
1. Scientific name (in italic or underlined), with authority
2. Common name
3. County of collection
4. Collection date
5. Collector’s name
6. Collection number, indicating order that plants were collected in your personal collection
7. Other information depending on class selected, i.e., value and importance, life span, growth season, origin, major types of range plants.
This information should be typed or printed neatly.
EXAMPLE:
Scientific name: Schizachyrium scoparium (Michx.) Nash
Common name : Little Bluestem
County of collection: Hall County
Collection date: 6 August 2016
Collector’s name: Joe Smith
Collection number: 37
Value and Importance: Livestock Forage: High, Wildlife Habitat: High, Wildlife Food: Medium OR Life Span: Perennial OR Season of Growth: Warm Season OR Origin: Native
Displays (Class 7): The purpose of the display is to tell an educational story to those that view the display. The display is a visual inches on plywood or poster board. The display should be neatly titled. Make sure to label display with exhibitor's name, address, and county on back side.
Boards (Classes 8-10): Boards should be no larger than 30 inches wide by 36 inches tall. Boards should be adequately labeled.
Entries: Each exhibitor is limited to one item per class.
*1 Value and Importance for Livestock Forage and Wildlife Habitat and Food Book - A collection of 12 different plant mounts, with four classified as high value, four as medium value, and four as low value for livestock forage, wildlife habitat, or wildlife food. Value and importance classifications can be found in the Range Judging Handbook and Contest Guide Appendix Table 1 (EC150, Revised July 2024) starting on pages 42. Plants can consist of any combination grasses, grass like plants, forbs, or shrubs. Assemble plant mounts in order of high, medium, and low value and importance. Label each plant mount with its value and importance classifications for each of the three areas: Livestock Forage, Wildlife Habitat, Wildlife Food.
*2 Life Span Book – A collection of six perennial plant mounts and six annual plant mounts selected from grasses or forbs.
*3 Growth Season Book – A collection of six cool-season grass mounts and six warm-season grass mounts.
*4 Origin Book – A collection of six native range grass mounts and six introduced grasses. Introduced grasses are not from North America and often used to seed pastures.
*5 Major Types of Range Plants Book – A collection of plant mounts of three grasses, three forbs, three grass-like, and three shrubs.
*6. Range Plant Collection Book - A collection of 12 range plant mounts with something in common (i.e. poisonous to cattle, or historically used as food by Native Americans, or dye plants or favorite antelope forage, etc.) Include a short paragraph at the front of the book which describes what the plants have in common and why you have chosen to collect them.
*7. Parts of a Range Plant Poster - Mount a range plant on a poster board. Label the key plant parts useful for ID & correct for that plant species such as root, branch, cotyledon, petiole, midrib, stem node, leaf, leaflet, spikelet, collar, ligule, sheath, internode, culm, crown, flower, etc.. Include the plant label in the lower right corner, including the scientific and common name of the plant. 4-H member name and 4-H county should be on the back of the poster.
*8. Special Study Board – A display of the results of a clipping study, a degree of use study, range site study, etc. A short essay must accompany the display to explain the reason for the study, what was learned, and study results. This should be placed in a sheet dover attached to the board.
*9. Junior Rancher Board – This exhibit should include a ranch map with a record book or an appropriate educational display on some phase of rangeland or livestock management. A short essay must accompany the display to explain the purpose of the rancher board, what was learned, etc.