Let it Grow: TIA's veggie growing comp for Agfest 2025 and Soil Your Undies Challenge

Back for Agfest 2025 with an additional challenge and over $1400 worth of prizes for Tasmanian Schools! 

Let it Grow veggie growing competition

Tasmanian school students are encouraged to put their agricultural science skills to the test in a race to grow the biggest (heaviest) black radish in eleven weeks.

The radishes will be weighed at a ceremony to be held at Agfest in 2025 as part of the Tasmanian Institute of Agriculture's annual Let it Grow vegetable growing competition.

The school that wins the Let it Grow competition will win a $750 prize pack sponsored by Horticultural and Landscape Supplies (HALS). The prize includes a WaterUps 1680 Wicking Bed, perlite, and bagged potting media. Additionally, the winning school will be treated to a workshop with one of our awesome entomologists (bug scientists) from the Tasmanian Institute of Agriculture and a gift voucher donated by Seed Freaks.

Soil Your Undies challenge

We are including an additional challenge in 2025 and are inviting students to bury a pair of 100% cotton undies in the school veggie patch for eight weeks. It sounds a bit bizarre, but it's a great way to discover how healthy your soil is. If there’s not much left of the undies you have good biological activity, which indicates healthy soil. The school with the most degraded undies will win the challenge. 

The school with the most degraded undies will win a prize pack sponsored by the TAS Farm Innovation Hub. The prize includes a $650 bulk soil or mulch delivery for the school and a workshop with an incredible NRM soil scientist. The school will also receive a gift voucher donated by Seed Freaks.

Why are we holding the competition?

The Let it Grow competition aims to spark interest and excitement around careers in agriculture. By increasing awareness and engagement with agriculture and food industries, we hope to inspire students to pursue educational pathways and careers in these fields, addressing skill shortages and promoting sustainable agricultural practices for future generations.

To give more students the opportunity to win a prize for their school, each school can submit only one entry into each category (radish and undies). The same school will not be able to win both sections as we want to ensure as many students as possible have an opportunity to win a prize for their school. The winning school for Let it Grow will not be eligible to win the Soil Your Undies challenge.

Thank you to our partners for their generous support.

• TAS Farm Innovation Hub
• Horticultural and Landscape Supplies (HALS)
• Seed Freaks

How to enter?

Simply register your school by Friday, 13 December 2024 and we'll post out an entry pack the first week of February 2025 containing 1 packet of seeds, an entry tag, 1 pair of 100% cotton undies, a ziplock bag and competition guidelines.

Want to know more about the competition?

Visit our website to learn more about the Let it Grow competition, including answers to frequently asked questions, photos from previous years, and related stories.