Middle Row (L to R): Charlotte Driver, Tana Harville, Josie Harville, Jay Driver, Avery Yerge, Emmy Bibbings
Front Row (L to R): Kynlee Davis, McCall Kemp, Amelia Hodges, Titus Chartier, Luke Chartier
by Rachel Petty, UT Extension Agent, 4-H Youth Development
Why do trees hate tests? Because they get stumped by the questions! Unlike the trees in that silly joke, the twelve Smith County 4-H’ers who competed in the Central Region 4-H Forestry Judging Contest were certainly not stumped as they took the opportunity to test their natural resource knowledge at Cedars of Lebanon State Park on Thursday, September 5, 2024.
Over the past month, these 4-H’ers have been hard at work preparing for the 4-H Forestry Judging contest. They have learned all about 60 different species of trees and how to identify them, studied up on common insects and diseases that affect our forests, learned how to measure trees using a Biltmore stick, and found out how to use a compass and measure distance with their pace. Spelling and capitalization count at this contest, so they also mastered tricky words like “anthracnose” and “adelgid”!
Our Smith County 4-H Forestry Judging program has recently been in the spotlight for competing in the National 4-H Forestry Judging Invitational in West Virginia this summer. Members of our 3rd place winning team, Easton Bibbings, Emmy Bibbings, Gabe Harville, and Owen Meeks, along with team coach Carson Meeks, came back to pass along their knowledge to our younger 4-H’ers this season.
That good coaching and these 4-H’ers’ hard work and dedication certainly paid off!
Our Junior Team, made up of Titus Chartier, Josie Harville, Amelia Hodges, and McCall Kemp, placed 1st in their division. Josie was the overall 1st Place High Individual in the Junior Division. McCall placed 5th, Amelia placed 4th, and Titus placed 3rd individually.
Our Junior High Team, made up of Charlotte Driver, Jay Driver, Tana Harville, and Avery Yerge, was also 1st place overall in their division. Tana was the overall 1st Place High Individual in the Junior High Division. Charlotte placed 11th, Jay placed 7th, and Avery placed 2nd individually. Luke Chartier also competed as a Junior High individual and placed 5th overall.
Our Senior High Team, made up of Kynlee Davis, Turner Harville, and John Summers, placed 2nd in their division and earned a bid to the state 4-H Forestry Judging Contest at the UT Arboretum in Oak Ridge in October. John placed 4th and Turner placed 2nd individually.
National competitors Easton, Emmy, and Owen also volunteered their time to help out with the regional contest. Smith County was well-represented as always!
I know that tree-mendous things are ahead for these bright young 4-H’ers and the 4-H Forestry Judging program in Smith County.
If you would like to learn more about the 4-H Forestry Judging program or any of the many exciting opportunities that 4-H can offer our local youth, please contact Rachel Petty in the Smith County office of the University of Tennessee Extension at 615-735-2900 or rpetty@utk.edu.
