there are 3 gardens of each theme (9 themes). there's always a veggie garden area (1 theme), an herb garden, one section for high school kids, usually a spooky type theme- up on the hill this yr and if you missed it, you missed out- and then a few others, normally one or 2 funny or novelty. we don't think up the themes, they give us a list, we ask for 3 we might want to work on, and are assigned a plot. i don't recall anyone with an avocado, but you might have seen nasima's guava. i thought it might be one, too, and asked. she had the middle salsa garden which took 1st place. as a contestant, i can tell you we are all soooo glad it's all done for another yr. we had tear out today. sad to work so hard to get and keep everything so perfect, and then rip it out in a day. all together, it's more work than most people can fathom. it IS fun, mostly, though. it's a great way to learn and meet some people with similar interests. i think john did a wonderful job this yr! the vision was his, for sure. i think we are all happy to have a change of directors this yr, and are looking forward to a great next one. zigzag, the n&o ran an article series on the gardens this yr, you should be able to search their site and find the whole set. there were lots of pix of certain gardens (mine wasn't one b/c i didn't want to deal with a reporter). i will try to post a link with some of the shots i took later this week. right now i'm just a bit fried. :) tammy Here is a link that might be useful: last of news & observer series

Main thing I eyeball is appearance in the jars. Check for colors, how packed, clarity of any syrups, etc. ie: with beets and jams, even with the same ingredients, you see a wide range of colors. Note which are the most appealing in appearance. Also note the jar presentation - some folks really get creative with their presentations. Dave

Karen, most county fairs judge tomatoes and other entries in the vegetable categories on appearance only. I guess the same with the Alabama State Fair. Nonetheless ... CONGRATULATIONS!!! You asked for opinions: I think tomatoes should be judged at 4-H fairs on appearance, production, disease resistance, and flavor. A question: Were your Purple Haze plants from F1 seed or from transplants obtained from SelectedSeeds aka: Darrel Jones? Or were your plants from saved seeds from another source? Just curious at to which filial generation you grew. Bill

Here you go Becky-- if I remember correctly they do a page-- with all the contest winners including the ones using specific commercial products like Pillsburg ready crusts & Eagle brand c.m.--at the end of the fair too. This site they add each day's winner -- but late in the day-- I'm waiting now for today's-- a German Potato salad.