At the recent Indiana State Fair, inside the Corteva Coliseum, away from livestock, Ferris wheels and tractors, sits some of Indiana’s most impressive produce — all of which was grown by Hoosiers from across the state.
Twenty-eight-year-old Kourtney Stroud of Bloomington, one of Indiana’s most decorated veggie growers, was visiting on during the fair, which ended Aug. 17, to pick up her ribbons and give her prized produce some TLC.
Stroud was a 10-year 4-H member when she was a kid, which is the longest amount of time a child can participate. Growing up on a farm, she learned how to cultivate veggies, take care of animals and do other other 4-H-related projects at a competitive level.
Her first time at the Indiana State Fair was when Stroud was in third grade and her wildlife poster was on display at the fairgrounds.
Kourtney Stroud, left, and Linda Bauknecht stand in front of a flower display in the Corteva Coliseum during the 2025 Indiana State Fair in Indianapolis. Stroud, of Bloomington, is holding an overflowing envelope of ribbons she won for her homegrown flowers and produce.
“My dad decided we should go to the state fair and see how it did, and so every year after that, I was lucky enough to get at least one non-livestock project that got in,” she said.
To Stroud, the experience wasn’t just about the competition but the opportunity to make connections, earn scholarships and learn new skills, which is what she wishes people who didn’t participate knew about the program.
Stroud finds ways to compete after 4-H
When a child turns 18, they are no longer allowed to participate in 4-H. For Stroud, this meant she had to look for a new outlet to be competitive while also using her gardening and 4-H skills. At the age of 19, she began growing vegetables and flowers and entering them into open competitions like the open horticulture and agriculture competition at the state fair.
Gardeners, farmers and just plain veggie enthusiasts send in their best peppers, persimmons, tomatoes, gourds and even watermelons for judging. The lucky winners may receive a blue first-place ribbon, red second-place ribbon, white third-place ribbon or, if they’re best in show, the esteemed purple ribbon.
This year, Stroud received 13 blue, five red and six white ribbons. She earned purple for her cabbage, cucumbers, onions and tomatoes. But even more impressive than the ribbons, Stroud had the grand champion of red onions.
According to Stroud, these types of accomplishments don’t come easy. Just like taking care of a pig or cow, she has to tend to sick plants, feed them, water them and protect them from bugs, parasites and other animals.
One of the biggest challenges for Stroud this year was worrying about the weather — especially because it’s something she can’t control.
“We had some really bad storms,” she said.
Strategy for growing veggies for competition
While there are challenges in the garden, Stroud shared that another obstacle she has to hurdle before taking home the ribbon is simply picking the produce at the right time and transporting it to the fairground from her home in Monroe County.
For Stroud, she has to be strategic about when she picks her produce and when she arrives at the fair to drop it off. The closer to judging time she drops it off and the less time it spends out of the ground or off the vine, the better it may look to a judge.
“It’s really hard since it’s stuff that decomposes,” she said. “Since it’s produce and stuff like that, you can’t cut it like five days before. It’s gonna go bad.”
Her strategy and attention to detail might just be two of the reasons she excels in the open competition, but most glaringly, Stroud is motivated by the competitive nature that she has been cultivating since her 4-H days.
“Some people get ribbons and just, like, throw them in a box or something,” Stroud said. “But before I moved, at my parent’s house, I had them all up on my wall.”
Linda Bauknecht is the Ag-Hort Building coordinator at the Indiana State Fair, and she is also a 4-H mentor to participants in Marion County.
Bauknecht enjoys seeing her 4-H kids grow into competitors like Stroud and other exhibitors that she meets while working at the fair.
“I talked to another exhibitor today who picked up some of her ribbons, and she’s so proud of her ribbons, and she puts them all in a little book and gets them out,” Bauknecht said. “It’s pretty cool with that satisfaction that you did the best that you could.”
While Stroud likes to show off her produce and the ribbons she has earned, she also enjoys eating fresh veggies from her garden. She told TheStatehouseFile.com that homegrown produce is not just better for you, it has more flavor because it is not rushed through the growth process. She said consumers can also take comfort in knowing who has touched their tomato every step of the way.
Stroud and Bauknecht both encourage Hoosiers to start their own gardens and enter their produce.
“It doesn’t hurt to try,” Stroud said.
Anna Cecil is a reporter for TheStatehouseFile.com, a news website powered by Franklin College journalism students. For a few weeks each summer, TSF pauses politics to focus on that other great state spectacle: the Indiana State Fair.
This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Bloomington woman wins grand champ, best of show for garden produce at Indiana State Fair
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