Kids’ Ideas Blossom at the Fair

For 9-year-old Kaylyn Foster, gardening is a family thing.

Following in the footsteps of her great-grandmother, grandmother and mother, Kaylyn entered a landscaping exhibit in the 1996 Ventura County Fair floriculture contest.

And she wasn’t disappointed, coming away with third place--and $85 in prize money--in her first year.

Kaylyn is among more than 50 children this year who participated in the floriculture competition, twice the number who entered last year, said Barbara Schneider, floriculture superintendent.

They are a new generation of gardeners who are enthusiastically creating gardens, buying plants and flowers and getting acquainted with the ins and outs of landscaping. It is a breath of fresh air, floriculture volunteer Sue Diller said.

“Some years ago, there were so many older people who were planting their gardens,” said Diller, a schoolteacher. “Then they got too old and could not garden any more.”

Landscaping is no easy task, especially with the hard river soil they have to shovel through on the fair grounds. Many of the children labored for weeks on their gardens, not only creating the look they wanted but researching what types of plants go in particular settings.

Gardening, Schneider said, takes special skills, strength and a lot of pride--all good lessons for children. And, she added, it keeps them busy.

The kids say it’s a blast.

“We are just doing it for fun,” said Kaylyn of Ventura. “It is not something to get upset about. It’s something to do for the summer.”

The Floriculture Department is known among fair-goers as one of the exhibits with the most variety and natural beauty. Before the fair begins, 35,000 square feet of dirt is transformed into islands of desert cactus gardens, tropical rain forests and mountain pine ranges with more than 100 tons of rock, hundreds of plants and more than 400 flowers.

The exhibitors are judged on their theme and creativity, Schneider said. A gardener must understand what types of plants belong in which environment. For instance, no cactus in a pine forest or sun plants in the shade.

Last year, Schneider created competitions in a 13 and under age group in such categories as general landscaping, open landscaping and floral booths.

Most, she said, enter the general and open landscaping categories, which allow more freedom and creativity.

Eleven-year-old Donovan Roche entered his first landscape and won first place. That blue ribbon, his mom proudly said, was no fluke.

Donovan put in months of preparation that included making several sketches of his patch of land before deciding on the final look. He went to the nursery with his mom, Wyndra, who also entered the landscaping exhibit and won second place. Donovan spent $51 of his own money on such trees as jasmine and ash and such plants as flowering blue plumbegos and morning glories.

He wandered down to the Ventura River and hauled back half a dozen river rocks for an added touch to his exhibit.

Donovan said he is already preparing for next year.

He likes the prize money--$130--but the best part, he said, is creating his landscapes. He even had some words of advice for fellow competitors Justin and Cory Finkbeiner, who came in second.

“I know something that could’ve helped,” said Donovan, as the three gathered around the Finkbeiner exhibit. “If you had covered up the [flower] pots under the mulch, you might have won.”

Although they are competing, Schneider said, they like to help each other.

Robin Filbry,11, who won first place along with nine other girls in the 4-H Club competition, said the group had only one minor disagreement throughout the months of preparation.

Robin said they briefly discussed whether the tile deck in their exhibit should have a checkered pattern or columns. Without any hurt feelings, the girls decided to alternate the beige and white tiles instead.

“When we first started it didn’t look like it would go very far,” she said. “It was real fun to put it together. It was real fun with all the teamwork we did.”

* FAIR SCHEDULE: B2