Fun with Produce

Things are just big in Alaska. The state itself is just plain huge. Our borough (Alaskan for county) is the size of West Virginia, just to give you a little perspective.  So I suppose that it would only be fitting that the worlds largest produce is grown here. The summer days with about 20 hours of daylight are really helpful for growing large stuff. I'll tell you a little secret though. A lot (if not all) of this stuff is started inside a greenhouse in the middle of winter. While we may have a lot of sunlight, it still is simply not warm enough to put that stuff outside. I learned a valuable lesson concerning tomatoes this year. I bought three lovely tomato plants this spring. I planted them in my garden. Fall has arrived and I do not have a single tomato. It is just not warm enough here. I need a greenhouse. 

 

Meet the world's largest pumpkin. He weighs in at a whopping 1,101 lbs. 

 

 

Second place.

And this measly little guy was in third. They were all pretty close to weighing a half ton. That's a lot of pie.

The other big highlight of the fair is the winner of the largest cabbage contest. I think the winner this year was around 90 lbs.

This is a big zucchini. A 7.25 lb zucchini to be exact.

Here is a little man made of produce.
I think this particular contest with produce had to be my favorite. This section was to see who could create the best little creatures out of veggies and such. I loved this. This is definitely something that I could get caught up in if I ever entered. How fun.

I don't know what this is supposed to be but I love his nose. He reminds me of Walter Matthau from Grumpy Old Men.

This one looks like the cabbage version of anime.

One hungry little caterpillar.

I'll be honest, I don't know what this is supposed to be. The sticks/antlers in the head make me think deer or moose, but the leaves stuck to the back like wings are really throwing me off. Anyone have a guess?

Love this guy. He looks like a Muppet. Or he could also be a character from Wallace and Grommet.

This one won the grand prize and I can see why. I love that he can stand on his own four feet. I love the bean tusks and flowered trunk. My favorite part is the flower/moppet of hair on top of his head. He just makes me smile. I first think of Snuffleupagus from Sesame Street and Heffalump from Winnie the Poo. Obviously my first thought should have been 'elephant.'
Can you tell I have young kids? I didn't think so.