Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/198018
GROWER OF THE MONTH By Tyrell Marchant Like a Fish to Water Rob Lane of La Grande, Ore. Rob Lane's childhood didn't include hand lines or soil samples or fertilizers or tractors. He'd never heard of a digger link, and John Deere or Case was a debate he didn't even know existed. Yep, Rob Lane grew up a full-fledged city slicker in Seattle. But you'd never know it now. Today, he owns and operates Lane Farms in La Grande, Ore., specializing in certified Ranger Russet, Shepody and Russet Norkotah seed potatoes. Lane got his start in the farming game when as a communications student at Washington State University he was introduced by family friends to Pete Taggares, who owned a large commercial potato farm in Boardman, Ore., and had a seed operation in La Grande. In 1990, at the request of Taggares, Lane left school and came to the Grande Ronde Valley to replace Taggares' retiring manager and learn how to become a potato grower. Lane was initially offered a 25 percent share of the farm, and eventually was rewarded with half ownership and management responsibilities. 34 Potato Grower | November 2013 "I took to it like a fish to water," Lane says. "Starting on the ground, planting something, watching it grow, and then having a commodity to sell at the end…I thought that was the neatest stuff." Pete Taggares passed away in 1998, and Lane bought Taggares' share of the seed farm from Taggares' widow. Since then, Lane Farms has dabbled in canola, coriander, sugar beets and radishes. But wheat and seed potatoes have remained the operation's bread and butter. This year, Lane grew 275 acres of seed potato and 900 of wheat. So how does a guy with zero agriculture experience succeed in the potato business? According to Lane, one of the biggest contributors to his success has been his involvement with other people in the industry. He has served as president of both the Oregon Seed Potato Growers Association and the Oregon Potato Commission's Blue Mountain District. "Being involved in those organizations has helped my individual operation immensely," says Lane. "It's given me the chance to meet commercial guys who have become great customers. And I think it goes both ways; involvement in the industry helps guys on both ends."