Range

GENERAL RULES

Southern Plains Extension Unit County Fairs

ALL DEADLINES WILL BE ENFORCED.

      The shows and events of the Nuckolls & Thayer County Fairs will be under the direction of the designated Extension staff and superintendents. The Extension staff and superintendents will make all on-the-spot decisions necessary for the operation of the shows. In case of a complaint or a disagreement with the show, the exhibitor should discuss it with the Extension staff and the superintendent within one hour after the show.  If an agreement cannot be reached, then the exhibitor and/or the Extension staff and superintendent should request a grievance committee meeting. Grievance must be submitted in writing. The grievance committee will consist of two 4‑H Council members, two Fairboard members and one neutral superintendent. The decision reached by this committee is final. 

Rules: 

1. Eligibility Requirements- Competition in the county 4‑H Fair is open to youth who are enrolled in Nuckolls or Thayer County 4‑H projects in which he/she is exhibiting. The youth must be 8 years old on January 1 of the current calendar year and under the age of 19 years of age on January 1 of the current calendar year. CloverKid members are 5-7 years old on January 1 of the current calendar year.

2.  Pre-Entry- Pre-entries are required for ALL fair exhibits.

PRE-ENTRY DEADLINES:

Nuckolls – Paper Entries Only – July 11^th - 4:00 PM

Thayer – Online Entries Only- July 17^{th –} Midnight 

        Absolutely NO late entries accepted!

*Subject to the 4‑H Council policy committee.

3. Number of Entries Allowed.

    Nuckolls County ONLY- Unlimited entries per class numbermay be made per exhibitor with the exception of a limit of two entries per class in Horticulture. 

    Thayer County ONLY- Limit of two entries per class.

    See General Animal Rules for livestock entries.

4. Entry Tags- Exhibits other than livestock contest must have entry tags attached to the exhibit at the time of entry. Tags are printed through your local Extension office.

5. Exhibits Released-See fair schedule. All fair exhibits are expected to be at the fair during scheduled times. Premium and support/booster payments will be forfeited for early removal of show animals with the exception of animals released for the animal’s welfare by written approval from a veterinarian or for legitimate reason with written approval from the species’ superintendent and a representative of the 4‑H council livestock committee. In case of emergencies, contact the office staff. The Extension staff is not responsible for items left at the fairgrounds after scheduled times.

6. Exhibit Space- Space will be assigned by the department superintendent(s). All possible care will be used to prevent loss or injury to articles or animals exhibited, but fair management will in no way be responsible should loss or injury occur. 

7. Disclaimer of Responsibility- All persons participating in the Thayer or Nuckolls County Fairs, either as exhibitors or as spectators, agree to make no claim against said Thayer or Nuckolls County Fair Association/Board, its officers, employees, volunteers, or any other exhibitors for any loss or damage to persons or property in connection with the activities of the Thayer or Nuckolls County Fair and said participants agree to hold said Association and persons harmless from any such claims. Individuals will be held personally responsible for his or her actions and the Fair Association will not be accountable or responsible for any injury. Exhibitors are responsible for the health of their animals.

8. Ribbons & Premiums Awarded- All exhibits will be divided into groups according to merit. 

Purple…………… Excellent             Blue……………………...…Good

Red……………….Fair                     White………Needs Improvement          Rainbow……..Non-Competition

Equal exhibits will be given ribbons of the same color in each class. Only worthy exhibits will be awarded ribbons and/or premium money. Trophies/banners/medals will only be awarded to purple & blue-ribbon exhibits. NO red or white ribbon entries will earn trophies. Unused trophies will be recycled.  In case there are insufficient funds to pay premiums in full, they will be prorated and paid accordingly. 

9. State Fair Eligibility-An exhibitor must be a 4‑H member enrolled in the county which she/he represents and must be 8 years old by January 1, with the exception of program specific age requirements for Shooting Sports and First Lego League. 

10. State Fair Exhibits- The Extension staff deliver many exhibits to the State Fair as a courtesy to exhibitors. However, exhibitors may be asked to arrange transportation of some articles that are large or heavy.

11.  State Fair Rules will apply when County Fair Rules are not adequate.  In case the general rules conflict with department rules, the department rules govern.                      

12. Interview Judging- Clothing Judging- See interview information involving Clothing and Fashion included with the Clothing & Fashion show rules. Static Exhibit-Interview judging is encouraged but not required for all other static exhibits. 4‑Hers can interview once per project for a total of 5 interviews. Sign up for interview judging will occur at exhibit check in, in each of the project areas. Interviews will be scheduled according to the project and class. If the 4‑Her can’t make a certain time, we will try to work with them, but we cannot guarantee that they will get to interview with all the projects they want.   

13. Exhibits entered by 4‑H members with special needs will be marked for the judge’s information only. Families will provide this information.

14. Identification- In addition to entry tag, a label with the exhibitor’s name, item’s department, division, and class should be attached to each separate piece of the exhibit.

15. Scoresheets- Scoresheets used for classes in divisions are listed by the corresponding division or class. PLEASE NOTE: County Fair scoresheets are denoted with CF numbers whereas State Fair scoresheets are denoted with SF numbers. Many county classes will use state fair scoresheets. For example: Heritage scoresheets begin with letters SF therefore will be found on the scoresheet website listed above. If any entire division uses the same scoresheet, the scoresheet number will be listed under the division title.

16.* Classes- All classes with a star (*) after the class number are not eligible for state fair competition.

RANGE MANAGEMENT

Premium Code: STATIC ITEMS

            The purpose of this division is to help 4-H members identify and collect the 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. 

Department Rules:

   1. Each exhibit must be properly identified with Unit and Class. 

   2. All plant displays and display covers must be the result of the current year's work. 

3. 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). 

4.  The purpose of these exhibits is to demonstrate to the public the benefits from the study and application of crop, weed, range and soil sciences to solving problems in management, conservation, sustainability, and environmental protection. 

5.  For guidelines on specific projects, refer to appropriate project manuals.

Class Rules: 

1. 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. A 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: Scientific name (in italic or underlined), with authority - Common name. - County of collection. - Collection date. - Collector's name. - Personal collection number, indicating order that plants were collected in your personal collection, - 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.

2. 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 representation (pictures, charts, graphs) no larger than 28 inches by 28 inches on plywood or poster board. The display should be neatly titled. Make sure to label the display with exhibitor’s name, address, and county on the back side.

3. Boards (Classes 8-9): Boards should be should no larger than 30 inches wide by 36 inches tall. Boards should be adequately labeled.

Dept D  Division 330

Classes

1   Value and Importance for Livestock Forage and Wildlife Habitat and Food Book- Scoresheet SF 260-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 page 42. Plants can consist of any combination of 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 it’s value and importance classifications for each of the three areas: Livestock Forage, Wildlife Habitat, Wildlife Food.

2    Life Span Book- Scoresheet SF 260- A collection of six perennial plant mounts and six annual plant mounts selected from grasses or forbs.

3    Growth Season Book- Scoresheet SF 260- A collection of six cool-season grass mounts and 6 warm-season grass mounts.         

4    Origin Book- Scoresheet SF 260- A collection of plant mounts of six native range grasses and six introduced grasses. Introduced grasses are not from North America and often used to seed pastures.

5    Major Types of Range Plants Book- Scoresheet SF 260- A collection of plant mounts of three grasses, three forbs, three grass-like, and three shrubs.

6. Range Plant Collection Book- Scoresheet SF 259- 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, interned, 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- Scoresheet SF 260- A display of the results of a clipping study, a degree of use study or a 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 cover attached to the board. 

9   Junior Rancher Board- Scoresheet SF 260- 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.