As employees of a grower-owned, nonprofit publication, the staff at Good Fruit Grower manages resources wisely. We resist costly trends and put a lot of miles on our cars and our computers.

But when it comes improving service to readers, we make investments.

That’s why you’ll see Good Fruit Grower staff over the next few months at many of our industry’s best conferences, gathering information on research and innovative practices in order to produce the best reports for you.

The 2017 Washington State Tree Fruit Association Annual Meeting and Northwest Hort Expo will be held in Wenatchee, Washington, Dec. 5-7. <b>(TJ Mullinax/Good Fruit Grower file photo)</b>

The 2017 Washington State Tree Fruit Association Annual Meeting and Northwest Hort Expo will be held in Wenatchee, Washington, Dec. 5-7. (TJ Mullinax/Good Fruit Grower file photo)

You will see us at shows in Washington, Pennsylvania, New York and Michigan, including:

—Great Lakes Fruit, Vegetable and Farm Market EXPO in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Dec. 6-8.
—112th Washington State Tree Fruit Association Annual Meeting and Northwest Hort Expo in Wenatchee, Washington, Dec. 5-7. (We will again partner with Wilbur-Ellis on a drawing for a nice piece of farm equipment; last year, we gave away a John Deere Gator TX 4X2.)
—Empire State Producers Expo in Syracuse, New York, Jan. 17-19.
—Mid-Atlantic Fruit and Vegetable Convention, Hershey, Pennsylvania, Jan. 31 to Feb. 2.
—Washington Association of Wine Grape Growers in Kennewick, Washington, Feb. 7-9.

That’s a partial list. We are literally going the extra mile so our print and online pages contain the industry’s most in-depth and trusted reports.

One highlight of the winter meetings will be the presentation of the 2016 Good Fruit Grower magazine Grower of the Year.

We announce the winner in our December issue and present the award at the annual meeting of the Washington State Tree Fruit Association.

Selected by the magazine’s advisory board, winners represent the best in our industry, orchardists who not only grow great fruit but also contribute to the industry.

We began the award in 1997 with recognition of Bruce Allen of Yakima, Washington. Last year, we recognized Brenton Roy of Prosser, Washington. I know you will enjoy reading about this year’s winner.

December is also a time when we like to launch new services, and this year is no exception.

Beginning with our December issue, we start a project to better serve Spanish speakers. I’ll talk about that in future issues.

We’re excited about this project, and we thank those who have advised us and the sponsors who make this service possible.

***

Marcus MichelsonWith this issue, our masthead gains a new name: Marcus Michelson, our new content and design specialist. He fills a position vacated by the retirement of Aurora Lee.

Marcus comes to us from the newspaper industry, most recently the Yakima Herald-Republic, where he has served as an editor and designer.

Marcus’ initial focus will be working with Jared Johnson, design/production manager, on page designs and with our advertising staff on designing ads for clients. He will also work with Senior Editor Shannon Dininny on writing assignments.

Marcus grew up in Poulsbo, Washington, and graduated from Washington State University. He is so talented, there’s not much he can’t do. He’s also experienced in web design, social media and podcasting.

I highly recommend his Trivia Minute podcast; it’s addictive.

***

instagramDo you love our gorgeous covers? And what about incredible photography by TJ Mullinax? See our covers and other images on our new Instagram account. Find it at goodfruitgrower (one word). •