our youth : AG STARS
DECEMBER 2017 PARKER COUNTY TODAY
90
LANIE WALKER
and HER GREEN THUMB
A Force To Be Reckoned With
BY MISTY BROWNING
Eleven-year-old Lanie Walker is a very busy little girl . The Brock elementary fifth-grader shows crops through the Spring Creek 4-H Club . Like every other kid involved in that program , it keeps her extremely busy . Even her mom is in awe at how packed her schedule can be at times .
“ She is a well-rounded kid , and does a little of everything ,” said mom McKenzie Prather . “ She stays very busy .”
Even though it takes hard work and dedication to show horticulture , Lanie loves it . She was exposed to horticulture and gardening in general as a child while watching her grandmother plant , learning what to do and what not to do . It was her grandmother that Lanie inherited her “ green thumb ” from , and she is very proud to have that gift .
“ My grandma owns Harry ’ s Greenhouse , and when I was little I would go pick out plants and plant them in my dad ’ s garden ,” she said .
One reason she loves being involved in horticulture is that she likes to eat what she grows . Her claim to fame are her peppers — Spanish Spice and Giant Marconi peppers , to be exact . Lanie says she loves to snack on her peppers , and that they can get up to a half-foot long . Those gigantic peppers are award winners and a big seller every year . They are also Lanie ’ s favorite things to grow .
“ My peppers get really big , and the first time I showed them they won first place and have won a lot of prizes .” Not only has she won first place , but third and fourth place , as well . But Lanie doesn ’ t just show peppers ; she also shows okra , squash and onions .
Even with all her awards , one of the things she is most proud of is her participation in the horticulture division of the 4-H record book contest . She won first place in Parker County and made it to district . She won ’ t be able to advance until her senior year , but her family is proud that she made it as far as she did after only showing a few years .
Lanie has also won awards for
her other vegetables . At the 2017 Parker County Frontier Days Livestock Show , Lanie won for her peppers and squash .
In the little bit of spare time she has , she doesn ’ t sit and watch television like most kids her age . She lives on a cattle ranch , so there is always something to do involving cattle . Lanie loves to help her parents , including when it ’ s time to brand the cattle . She also loves horses and has participated in rodeos , though she doesn ’ t do it as much as she used to .
“ I used to be in the Kids Junior Rodeo Association . I did barrel racing and pole bending ,” she explained . Her mom says that she had rodeoed since the age of 5 , and would go to little girl play days and practice every Saturday . She didn ’ t ride this last year because of one new love in her life — basketball . She fills what precious spare time she has with the popular sport .
But she ’ s not ready to quit showing off her green thumb quite yet . She plans to keep showing her vegetables , maybe even adding a few extra types in the upcoming years . She is even thinking about showing a pig . Lanie has shown animals in the past , including a heifer , but gets too attached to them . She ’ ll decide soon if she wants to take on another animal .
When she grows up , she wants to attend either Tarleton or Texas A & M and become a vet . She plans to continue well into high school showing the crops that she loves . She will do it in the 4-H program for one simple reason : “ I think it ’ s a good program .”