I do the premium guide for our county's fair and most of the premiums, even for First Place, are not impressive - $3-5. But still, a few years ago I decided to grow lots of stuff just for the fair and won about $60 in prizes.

The past couple of years, I try to enter something from every category that I am growing for my personal consumption, not with an eye toward winning but simply making the display of veggies larger.

OTOH, I know of this one lady who won nearly $340 in premiums, but she entered dozens of categories, especially canned goods and cakes/pies.

I also usually have a display, something that doesn't win any prize outside of a Best of Show Ribbon (no money!) but for fun. One year, it was 35+ hot peppers, another year a 10' plant (Tainung 2 Hibiscus) that looked just like pot, close enough that a deputy sheriff questioned me, another year a hydroponic display. I'll probably do the hydro again this year - I have a banana plant in a 5-gallon bucket that is already 3' tall with huge leaves, growing under a LED light panel. I'm also starting another display - growing KY Blue Wonder pole beans in 5" containers, the kind where eight of them will fit in a 1020-size tray. The hope is to show that in a 200 square inch space, one can easily raise not only enough green beans to feed a family of four in a week, but also have enough left over to preserve for several weeks during the winter/spring.

I can see doing the same thing with lettuce and/or chard, cucumber, maybe acorn squash. Stuff that does not need to sprawl but will climb a trellis yet will grow in a 5" diameter by 6" deep pot.

Any other ideas?

Mike