24 POTATO GROWER | JUNE 2017
Removes dents in air tunnels
12" - 18" & 18" - 24"
"Tube Gator"
Custom Built Potato Harvesting Equipment
Visit us on the web @ www.lenco-harvesters.com
Manufacturer of Lenco Equipment
4 Row Wrap-A-Round Harvester
5773 Crystal Road • Vestaburg, MI
877-287-5711
Double Hinge Clips
28mm - 56mm
Can double the life of a belt
Can be used to extend the
length of a belt
166878AdvFar12h.indd 1 4/19/17 12:22 PM
"I talk with my customers all the time,"
Young says. "I ask them what they'd like me
to grow for them, and whether they know
which varieties they like. They give me
suggestions, and I try it.
"You've got to grow what they want, not
what you want."
Catering to customers has made Young
Family Farm a vibrantly diverse operation.
Aside from their 20 potato varieties, they
grow and sell sweet corn, cucumbers,
eggplant, beans, peas, zucchini, squash,
apples, peaches, strawberries and cut
flowers. Contracts with several local
grocery stores and an on-farm retail
business and supply Young's diverse
products to a diverse customer base.
"I call that diversification my insurance
policy," Young says. "If, say, I have a bad
year with butternut squash, maybe the
potatoes will make up for it. If I have bad
year in potatoes, maybe the corn will make
up for it. The most important thing is
finding good clients who will pay you and
who you can trust."
Tyler Young is living his lifelong dream, and even amid all the challenges
the occupation offers, he can't help but smile more often than not.
