Taking Stock-The cruelest month

April is the cruelest month. At least that was T.S. Eliot’s assessment and the English poet wasn’t referring to taxes.

None the less, I’ve got taxes on my mind as I write this column, but let’s leave that cruel reality behind and talk about something a little more pleasant, the April issue of Spudman.

We have a varied and interesting collection of articles this month. Beginning with David Fairbourn’s profile of North Dakota grower Carl Hoverson.

Sometimes life throws a wrench into your plans for the future. Such was the case for Carl Hoverson. With the death of his father, a young man’s plans for a career as an engineer were forever changed.

Fairbourn’s profile of Hoverson provides us with an understanding of how dedication to hard work results in a successful farming operation. Success doesn’t happen by accident.

We continue our series celebrating The Potato Association of America’s centennial anniversary with an article by Joe Guenthner and Phil Nolte. Guenthner and Nolte place the spotlight on two sections in PAA this month, Plant Protection and Utilization & Marketing. These articles represent a great opportunity to read about an important research element within the potato industry.

This being our pesticide and disease issue you’ll note that we’re a little buggy this month. We have an update on new strains of late blight found in Wisconsin, as well as current research on glyphosate resistance, with an interesting sidebar about England’s King George III and the American Revolution.

Finally, this month we introduce the Spudman digital edition online. Now you can read the entire issue of Spudman, front cover to back cover, every article and every advertisement, online at Spudman.com. Check it out and send us your feedback. Tell us what you like and what you would like to see improved.