more... > Washington > Horticulture > Let's Get Growing > Biggest Pumpkin Contest [Image: pumpkins(1)] Update...Pumpkins are coming on strong. Agriculture Crops Building I am asking home vegetable gardeners, vegetable producers and others to bring a display to exhibit at the fair. The Fair is Less than a Month Away - 96th Year - "The Fair - A Family Tradition" The 96th Washington Parish Free Fair is right upon us. Let me share something with you that many of us just take for granted. The fair does not just happen by itself. It takes a tremendous amount of time, work, effort and other activities by VOLUNTEERS to make the fair the great event that it is. Around the Yard - Lawn and Fall Planting Follow these tips to toughen your lawn for the winter. In additon, there are a few suggestions about plants that can be grown for fall production.  more articles... Color in the Landscape [Image: zinna] Liven up your landscape by putting some color in it. Make More Plants - Try Propagating Begin making cuttings of some of your favorite plants. Make cuttings 5 to 6 inches of tip growth, leaving from 3 to 4 leaves of each cutting. Moles in the Lawn [Image: mole] I constantly get calls about how to control moles in the lawn and flower beds. Unfortunately, you won't have too much success unless you use the mole trap, and that is a very slow process. Fire Ant Control on Athletic Fields [Image: Fire Ant] It's not too early for coaches and athletic directors to be thinking about the control of fire ants on the playing fields, espcially when the football season is right upon us. The Lawn - Heat Stress Has your lawn recovered from the stress of the past several weeks? Big Pumpkin Contest The Daily News and LSU AgCenter are sponsoring this contest with production hopefully ready for year's Washington Parish Fair. Getting Ready for Fall Planting With the adverse weather conditions many gardeners experienced this spring -- hot, dry conditions -- our attention now turns to possibly planting a garden or vegetables for the fall. Generally, the same good cultural practices need to be followed. Fruit Care Blueberry plants will put on a second flush of growth in August, so a final fertilizer applicatin is needed now. Heat Tolerant Vegetables Heat tolerant vegetables can be planted during these hot days of summer and will give you some excellent results. Listed here are descriptions of some of the more popular crops. Around the Yard - Crape Myrtles If your crape myrtles have a white powdery substance on the foliage, it is called powdery mildew.