There were 122 exhibitors who entered 1,300 vegetables in the FFA Horticulture competition at the Iowa State Fair, but when all the points were tabulated, Dylan Schrock of Wellman claimed the High Point Exhibitor Award for the second year in a row. Schrock, a 2015 Mid-Prairie graduate who is entering his second year at Kirkwood Community College in their horticulture program, had 60 different vegetable entries at the fair, and placed high enough in each category to earn top honors.

Schrock, a self-described “nerd about plants,” said the first time he learned about horticulture, he found he couldn’t learn enough. He wanted to keep finding things out, so when he went to school he continued broadening his knowledge of plants. He has been gardening since middle school, and this is the fourth year he’s shown vegetables at the fair. His fellow Wellman FFA members also received awards in the horticulture competition. Makenzie Fay earned the Reserve High Point Exhibitor Award, and Lindsey Palmer was named Reserve Champion for Vegetable Container Display.