Northeast SD Land and Range Judging Contest is for FFA students from area high schools and is held on land near Webster, South Dakota. Personnel from the Northeast Glacial Lakes Project, local Conservation Districts, NRCS, FSA and SDSU Extension Service locate and set-up the contest sites. Students can participate in either land or range judging during this one-day event.
RANGE JUDGING - Participants in the range contest must identify twenty species of plants located along a plant line marked with flags. Students must state if the identified plants are desirable as food and cover for wildlife and livestock, state plant characteristics including whether the plant is warm season or cool season, perennial or annual.
Students must also evaluate two sites with differing plant communities and correctly determine plant composition and the sites suitability for grouse habitat and livestock grazing. They then must determine the type of management that should be implemented to reach a pre-determined objective set by the contest officials.
LAND JUDGING - Students participating in the land judging contest must determine the sites best use as agricultural land. After determining the soil properties and factors, they must determine the capability class and any factors that are limiting and keeping the land from being classified as Class 1 land. Students then must determine the most appropriate treatments to manage the land properly and provide for adequate plant growth.
Winning schools can participate in the National Land and Range Judging Contest held in Oklahoma.
