Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1891-10-23
AGRICULTURAL.
TRUCK-FARMING.
interesting Facts shown by the Census
about this Industry

OeHSuS investigation. within the past 70
years the infant industry has grown to be
one whose extent may be gagged by some
OF the figures presented in census bulle-
tin. Upwards of 500 OOO, 900 arc invested
in truck farms, aggregating over half
million acres of land, the annual products
of which CATER paying freight and com
missiOn) amount to S76,517, 155, and re-
quire the services of $50, 1913 persons, aid
ed by 75,S6G horses and mules, and $S,971,-
2O6 worth of farm implements and ma
chinery; the income of this comparatively
new traffic, after paying for labor, fertiliz-
ers, and seeds, is estimated at $52, 600, 900.
distinction is made between truck
farming and what is known as market-gar-
dening. The latter specially belongs to
small holdings within easy driving distance
of cities and towns, while truck farming
is defined as the production of green veg
etables on tracts remote from market, the
truck farmer being dependent on water
and rail transportation for the delivery,
and on commission men for the sale of his
products. For statistical convenience the
country was divided into twelve districts
New England, New York and Phiadel-
phia, Peninsular, Norfolk, Baltimore, South
Atlantic, Mississippi Valley, Southwest,
Central Northwest, Mountain, Pacific
Coast. Previous to 1860, Long Island,
New Jersey, Delaware and southern Ili-
nois were the chief truck centres, but to-
day over 10 per cent of our vegetables come
from the South Atlantic states, the MisSis-
sippi valley, the celery districts of Ohio
and Michigan, and from the Pacific coast.
A very considerable portion of the truck
products consumed in our great cities is
from 500 to 1900 miles away, and favored
localities, more particularly at the South,
devote their energies to the growth of spe-
cial varieties of green food, for which
there is a steady demand throughout the
year. Late in the fall and early in the
spring, Florida and the lower Mississippi
valley supply the Eastern and central cit
les, and California those of the far West
and mountain section, until the advancing
season, at the rate of ID miles a day, starts
the growth and consequent supply up
along the Atlantic coast and the great Mis-
sissippi valley, when the full season of
midsummer in the North continues the
supply, until winter frosts once more COM
pei a return to the South, where fresh
crop awaits the demand Of the market"
New potatoes, cabbages, cauiflowers,
and tomatoes are as yet the only vegetables
shipped from California so far east as st.
! Louis, Kansas City and Chicago, and then
only in small quantities to meet a partial
failure of the crops in the Mississippi val
ley and Florida. But the law of natural
monopoly has shown itself in the past, and
cannot fail in the future. With rapid de-
velopment of railroads come fast trains and
lower freight and express charges, and
these artificial advantages will enable Cali
fornia, with fertility of soil that produces
every green thing to perfection and eli
mate largely free from the winter frost
that occasionally proves so disastrous al
the South, to compete sharply for much Of
the truck trade beyond the Mississippi i
has only been few years since the trucl
farmers of the Norfolk and Baltimore dis
tricts have successfully divided patronage
with the older and more Northern dis
tricts, yet already Norfolk growers grum
BILE over signs of a shifting trade, becaus
growers in Florida are severely pushing
their Maryland and Virginia rivals. Al
estimate made in 1879 placed the value o
the vegetable and berry crops shipped iron
If ,.lt Ia a.
sus year ending June, 1890, the value o
the vegetable crop shipments alone rose t
50, 773, 467; in addition there were handles
at the same port nearly 000, 600 melons.
The average melon fields of the SOutl
Atlantic states yield about 400 salabl
melons per acre; 1900 will load car
which will sell at the North anywhere iron
$50 to S275, leaving net returns iron
nothing up to $50 per car. One gentle
man in Dawson county, Georgia, report
making a net profit of $500 from 81 acre
in 1889. Over 114,000 acres are devote
to melon-rasing in the United States. !
crop that has gained in value of late year
in the Southern districts is sweet potatoes
these now return a handsome profit, il
some cases as high as 500 an acre on farm
which formerly barely met expenses. On
owner of 300 acres near Cape Charles, Va.
cleared so, 900 last year from his truck, o
over 25 per cent on the investment; sucl
a return was only rendered possible by re
cent favorable railroad facilities. Tn
small section, Mobile county, Alabama
shipped during the past three years 81,
1854 worth of truck; other Southern
distributing points, such as Savannah
Charleston, jacksonville, etc. supply equal
ly significant returns.
In the South Atlantic and Mississippi
valley districts many freedmen are engage
in this industry; they own their farms an,
teams and successfully rival their whit
neghbors. Some of the special report
filled out by these negro truckers prov
thorough grasp of their business on bot
the practical and commercial sides. Ont
selected for print, shows an average net il
come per acre varying from S75 for cabbage
and $50 for asparagus down to S25 for WI
teimelons, a crop which is more prolifi
but less remuneratiye, at the South tina
in other districts. The remarks appendt
TO one report are good answer TO niue
cheap talk about the negro of the SOutl
- "Total number of acres, At; value p