The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1897-09-12
THE HITCHCOCK DISTRICT.
SOIL, Fruits, Vegetables ana the
Markets.


Markets.
Hitchcock. Texas. September 7 Il hcre-
with hand Won absi act Of the conditions at
Hitchcock and vicinity.
In the Galveston county mainland coun-
try we have two distinct characters of
soil-one a light sandy loan. with clay
| foundation. some twelve or eighteen inches
below the surface. valuable In plant food
and retaining both moisture and fertilizers /,
the Other strong. stiff. black waxy soil
free from lime, very much like the log
wallow of the West. Both soils are SUI
perior for a great variety OF fruits and
vegetables. producing average corn and
cotton aud excellent sugar cane While
half balo OF cotton ana forty bushels
are not generally considerable profitable
ana tho agricultural industry is more
properly, strictly speaking. confined to fruit
ana truck gardening rather than farming.
inc principle fruits are peais, ,trawber-
RES. hgs grapes and several varieties of
plack and dowberries, IN OF which do eX-
ceptionally well. Pears tic Conte and
heiner) are grown from cuttings. set TO
orchard one hundred TO one hundred and
twenty trees per acre. cultivated Ike spy
other crop until the keiffer are and ito
Le Conte years OF age, when they are
put In lawn and require no further nj
tention than moving two or three times
year, from which a superior crop OF HAY Is
obtained aud from that time bears from
hve to twelve bushels per tree, worth on
an AVERAGE OF 81 per bushel. Strawberries
are the leading money crop. Noonan and
tne Mitohell being the principal varieties
planted Doth Oh the hat and in rows. both
nethods being successful and Yield from
$500 TO $3.50 per acre The plants bearing
y fuii crop the first year. and produce good
pNuit In March from plants set out In the
preceding December. The leading crane is
tho White Niagara. which after the second
wear bears enormously and sells from
10 ~ cents per pound. These vines are
healthy, require no spraying, and but little
tere, the Munson system OF treilace being
tne most popular and apparently the hest
aohpted TO the clinlae. This Immediate
osS'st country seems to be the homo of the
nk, many varieties doing unusually we'll,
krsw BEST from cuttings, fruiting hrhtly
tho FIRST and bearing marketable c,nn
,uo second year. an old tree ciIDn pro-
uVcihg from eight TO forty bushels Some
vsnetieS ripen good mutt every day from
me Isl OF juno to the list of November
Whilo this fruit does not bear shia,nent
LOT any great distance, there Is A good
nome market. and very large ;rofit in
preserving Among the leading and most
profitable vegetables are cabbage. onion,
tomatoes. celery, lettuce, caulifloger csn,
taioupe, melons, Irish and sweet rot,toes
egg plant bects, carrots. turnins ,,eum
bers, spinach. okra, artichokes. groom ana
RED pepper and great varieties OF both meas
.'nu psans' IN fact. there arc very few
nv ea'aiosued In the United States
lUuL moi hn rrp "a,
coast country cabbage, while as vet fnt
the most profitable trop Is fast comIng
W the front as reliable paying trop
from souo TO 1000 plants can DO set unnn
an acre, realizing on an average OF 4 csnt
per pound. Several valuable, edlhlc yari.
WIS OF mushroom spring up every ffll
WIN aad spontaneous. The leading forage
crops arc Spanish peanuts. the meal cs
| which is by actual analysis six Tines
rleher In animal food than corn. and turee
hancs richer than oat meal
| 1u,ueso SUGAR cane, amber variety. he
lhe the BEST. cuta from four TO six ti,nca
y y Sow peas, African corn, red clover.
mena"ua grass; and milo maize, While
many other small grains, do wall rohaccs,
| from the imported seed makes an us' "vo
aiiv hne plant Of excellent quality ana
| rice. while II has not been raised IA anv
great extent. and IN comparison Nth yeyc.
tsbies and fruit Is not considered nrofit :
ape' y grown OF good Quality aud rrown
wa.hout uiihcuity. These figures are based
uhon crops without the use OF water NV
means Of Irritation. Where irrira,,s, W w
~ some instances is applied thess 5rv,ss
eau be Doubled With safety In any INSTANCE
ana even the Increase In produr.ion ,Tonid
DC IN greater proportion. Uudsrlvinv th,r
Nnoie section 10 tho most remarkable ar.
Lesian basin on tho American continent
me "reateat abundance OF absolutely ~.
go a.