Resources

Northwest Oklahoma Land and Range Contest

FFA and 4H members and adults in rangeland.
FFA and 4H members and adults in rangeland.

Submitted by Coleta Bratten, Dewey County Conservation District

Six Conservation Districts sponsored the 12th annual Northwest Oklahoma Land and Range Judging Contest on Oct. 26, 2011. The competition was held at the Southern Experimental Research Station in Woodward. One hundred and fourteen students from 10 FFA and 4-H Chapters within the six conservation district area participated in the contest. Prizes were awarded in several team and individual categories.

Teenage participants gathered for the contest.
Teenage participants gathered for the contest.

Dewey County, Ellis County, Major County, Texas County, Harper County, and Woodward County Conservation Districts sponsored the contest with support from the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service.

“This is a joint effort between conservation districts in providing conservation education in our local schools,” said Coleta Bratten, Dewey County Conservation District secretary, “This program has been a great success and couldn’t be done without our partners from NRCS providing technical assistance to setup and judge the contest.”

Contestant exiting shallow narrow pit in field.
Contestant exiting shallow narrow pit in field.

Each district in northwest Oklahoma that wants to participate as a sponsor donates $200 to purchase trophies and supplies. Any leftover funds are divided between the participating chapters to use for conservation education purposes in their classrooms. Farm Credit of Western Oklahoma provides food and cooks the meal each year for the event.