The South Carolina Department of Agriculture Celebrating Over 90 Years of Service to Producers and Consumers American Classic Tea, the only tea grown in North America, is produced at Charleston Tea Plantation on Wadmalaw Island. The first Small Farms Program in the nation was introduced in South Carolina in 1983. The South Carolina Department of Agriculture Certified Roadside Market Program is free to all qualifying markets in the state. Beef cattle are raised throughout South Carolina and are sold to processors and feed lots in the Southeast and Midwest. Kiwifruit, a native fruit of China, is now being produced in several areas of the state.
Tobacco is the number one cash row crop in South Carolina.
South Carolina produces all major varieties of watermelons and is ranked 5th in production nationally. The nursery, producing about 100 million tree seedlings per year on 600 acres, is expected to harvest its 1 billionth seedling this year. The nursery is watered and fertilized by 1500 ft. irrigation systems. Each tree takes about 30 years after planting to be ready to harvest for timber. The nursery grows loblolly, slash, and long-leaf pines.