Note: Jennifer Herring and Aubrey Mitchell are high school homeschoolers. Joel Slater was home schooled all his life.

El Dorado, Kan. – Jennifer Herring, a Butler County, Kan. 4-H member, earned 353 of 450 points and placed third in national competition at the National Junior Horticulture Association 4-H/FFA judging contest in Cleveland, Ohio, Oct. 8-10.

At Kansas’ state contest, Aug. 27 in Manhattan, Herring earned 945 of 1,000 points to claim the top prize as high-scoring individual in the state, said Chuck Marr, Kansas State Research and Extension state leader in horticulture, longtime 4-H judging contest organizer.

“A score of 900 or above – 920, for example – reflects an excellent effort,” said Marr, who described Herring’s winning score as “exceptional.”

In the national contest, Butler County horticulture judging teammates Jacob Hadley, Aubrey Mitchell and Joel Slater scored 14th, 20th and 22 respectively and, with Herring, claimed fourth place in the national team competition, said Larry Crouse, K-State Research and Extension horticulture agent in the county and volunteer team coach.

Herring, Mitchell and Slater are members of the Lily Lake 4-H Club.

“Preparing for the competition is demanding, but the experience is educational,” Crouse said. “4-H’ers who choose the project typically develop a lifelong interest in plants.”