On Friday, November 24, the Lewis Cass FFA participated in the area crops, forestry, and entomology contest. The contest was held at the Miami County Fairgrounds. The FFA took two minibusses full of members to the contest. They left right before the start of school and made it to the fairgrounds at about 8:00. Mr. Appleton said, “This is the first year we have ever had a team make it out of all three contests to go to state.”
The crops contest consists of the identification of weeds, crops, damages, and seeds. It also includes a section on grain grading and a written exam. The participants move from station to station to work on the different parts. The contest will have pictures of the crops and weeds for the contestants to look at. Real seeds are put in bowls for that part of identification. Grain grading consists of a lot of rules to remember. Contestants have to know what factors of the grain change the grade of the grain. Some factors that change the grade could be insects, foreign material, and heat damage. The people on the crops team were Kyle Henry, Lily Yax, Allara Henry, and Brian LeDonne. Allara Placed 10th individually at the crops contest. The team placed sixth in the contest, and they will be going to the state contest at Purdue University on December 9.
The Entomology contest involves the identification of insects as well as a written exam. The contestants have to remember the names and orders of 150 different insects. This can be very hard because some of the insects are extremely small. Lewis Cass had two teams make it out of the area contest. The first team, the FFA Lacewings, consisted of Riley Johnson, Adryanna Sellers, Alaina Sanchez, and Morgan Leicht. Riley, Adryanna, and Alaina placed fourth, fifth, and sixth individually in the contest. They placed second overall in the contest. The second team, the Friday Night Blow Flies, consisted of L.J. Hillis, Lexi Gotshall, Alyssa O’Neill, and Maddy Willis. They placed sixth overall. These teams will also attend the state contest at Purdue. Lexi Gotshall said, “I am really happy we were able to make it out of the area contest, and I am excited for the state competition.”
The Forestry contest deals with the different trees of Indiana. The contestants have to identify the wood, seed, and leaf of the 50 different trees in Indiana. Another part of the contest is the general knowledge exam. They also have to identify different diseases and insects that are harmful to the trees. Lewis Cass had one team make it out of the area contest. The team, the FFA Leafminers, consisted of Brystal Gillem, Trinity Gillem, Isabella See, and James Myers. They placed sixth in the forestry contest and will be going to Purdue for the state contest. James Myers said, “The forestry contest is one of my favorite contests.”
