Evening star., 1897-04-09
COLD FACTS FROM A FREEZE.
What the People of Florida Learne,
in the Winter of 1895.

What the People of Florida Learned
in the Winter of 1895.
From the Chicago Record
Thoughtful people now agree that "the
greatest freeze of '95' was good thing
for Florida-a blessing in disguise. 1t was
a costly lesson, however. A hundred thou
sand citizens, more or less, paid $3,0000O0
or 100000 to find out that the frost
line" that had been recognized since the
"cold winter Of '32'' was not permanent,
and was likely to be changed, like railway
time tables, without previous notice They
were taught that it was not good policy to
put all their eggs in one basket, and that
the single crop plan of farming was a
failure. Many were discouraged and left
the state. Those who had more courage
and wisdom remained, and while they were
resuscitating their frozen groves they dis
covered that they could make $500 SJOO
an acre by truck farming-by raising peas
onions, cucumbers, potatoes. Strawberries
and other fruits and vegetables for the
northern winter markets.
The demand for this sort of produce dur
ing the winter months is practically un-
limited. and the prices unnaturally large
1t costs no more to raise a bushel Of pota-
toes in this warm. sandy soil in December
than in July, yet they can be sold for 81
a DuSnel In december ana 1Or only ~ cents
in July. The supply of unreasonable vege
tables formerly came from Bermuda and
the Bahamas. THE great freeze" taught
the farmers of Florida that they could
have a monopoly from December to March,
when the early crops of southern Georgia
are ready for market.
So the wise ones stopped boasting about
profits of $500 an acre from orange
groves. They stopped telling the familiar
story about 81 box for oranges on the
plantation, twenty-five boxes to the tree
and 100 trees to the acre-all clear gain"
and began to plant and weed vegetables,
which are not so profitable as oranges, but
are reasonably certain Of paying from
$4OO to $500 an acre net.
Down in the southern part of the state
the cultivation of pineapples was found to
be even more profitable, and somebody
blundered upon the discovery that the best
ones were grown under shelter. So all the
pine fields are now covered with lattice
work, just high enough for a tall man to
walk under without STOPPING. This lattice
is made of rough strips of pine, three inches
apart on rough scantling. and costs about
$500 an acre 1t not only furnishes perfect
protection against all possible frosts. but
the fruit thus protected from the heat of
the sun is more juicy and of finer fiber than
that grown In the open air. Industrious
farmers are now raising 5000 pineapples to
the acre, and selling them on the planta-
tions by the thousand at Is cents apiece,
while the shoots that are plucked from the
plants are worth from 81 to $ dozen to
those who are starting in the business.
Another industry that can be attributed
the freeze" and is bound to be permanent
and profitable, is the cultivation of Cuban
tobacco. The scarcity and high prices
caused by the revolution have given 1t a
decided stimulus, for the tobacco planta-
tions in Cuba have been very generally de-
stroyed and IL the island should ever be at
peace again 1t will require several years to
get back to the magnitude and the quality
of its former product.
Before the war of the rebellion, I'D In
Gadsden county, between the gulf and the
Georgia line. where the people still hunt
wildcats for sport, a good deal of tobacco
was raised. At one time 1t was considered
the finest of the country. and the average
value Of the crop was $4O0,0O but after the
big plantations were broken up and worked
on shares by negroes. who formerly work.
Cd them as slaves, tobacco cost too much