Omaha daily bee., 1899-08-27
GIANT CROPS OF GIANT FRUIT
Fascinating Romsnces of Fruit Growing in
the Watermelon Belt.
PROFITS AHEAD OF ALL OTHER CROPS
some Prize Melons Weighing over
One Pounds-A Record
Breaking Year for the
Crow


This is the reigning year OF the melon.
Although the season is still young, more
canteloupes and watermelons have reached
the northern markets than ever before in
the history of the commission men. In
the last week of July carloads of melons
were to be had for the asking in Jersey
City. Other carloads at Washington stood
open to the longing of the passing darkey-
boy. The melon belt, which reaches from
Otero county in Colorado in a bread band
sagging somewhat southwark and finally
touching the southern Atlantic coast. has
borne fruitfully throughout its entire length.
This year the acreage, for two reasons, has
been vastly increased. During the winter
OF 1898 and 1899 from so to 20 per cent of
the peach trees OF Georgia, Alabama and, in
deed, Of the entire gulf region, with the
exception Of Texas, were killed by the frost.
In Florida a considerable proportion of the
orange trees, which had not suffered on
previous winters, were lost, thereby throw
ing a large number of fruit growers out of
their regular lines of planting. As a re-
suit thousands Of acres formerly devoted to
peach and orange growing were planted to
canteloupes and watermelons. In most Sec
' tions of the south the season was favorable
for melon growth and the result was a
great overstocking of the market. And yet
the experienced grower, with the wisdom
which comes of many paintings, has not
been so seriously injured by reproduction
as many of the newer melon growers. He
understood the science of securing an early
crop and of rushing 1t through we'll estab-
lished channels into the markets OF the
north.
AS a result, the first carloads of cante-
1ouDea IN rpapb Now York brought from 81
to $3.50 a crate. That means 81, 100 and ST.
500 for a single carload of from 1000 10
Is 900 melons. 1t is not at all unusual to
raise in parts of Georgia and Alabama from
two to three carloads to the acre. This
would mean a money yield of from 1900
to $4,000 to the acre, provided the melons
could all be harvested early in the season.
When this is compared to the yield to the
acre of wheat or almost any other known
crop the profits would appear enormous.
Certain it is that a number Of the most ad-
vanced growers have been astonishingly
successful with their ventures In the south.
W~atermelons have been only a step behind
the canteloupes in the size and market
ing success Of the crop. About 1000 melons
are considered a carload. During the last
two or three years these melons have aver
aged a full thirty pounds weight and some
of them have gone beyond sixty pounds,
WQlle u Few prize mtlOnS weighing
pounds and over have crept into the ship
ments. The earliest bring all
manner of fancy prices. BY the list of Au-
gust the price has usually dropped from 5000
to $3.50 per carload. That would mean a
cost of from 2 to 3.5 cents for a thirty
pound m~elon-about as cheap a dessert, even
after the middleman's charges have been
added, as the average American family could
desire. AS the season advances the price
decreases still further until 1t frequently
happens that the shipper is willing to give
his product to anyone who will be kind
enough to pay the freight. The earlier
melons nearly all come by express and
spend from two to three days on the road;
from Colorado the earliest product requires
nearly three days, or from four to five days
by freight; New York can comfortably con-
sumo from twenty to forty carloads every
day.
Growers Work Like n Trust.
One curious development Of the melon
crop, chiefly during the present season. has
been the growing sale of canteloupes in the
market by name. A few years ago a musk
melon was a muskmelon. The only differ
ence of designation was the elementary
designations-"good" and bad" / asked
w. A. Taylor. assistant pomologist of the
United States Department of Agriculture,
how the muskmelon happened to become the
canteloupe.
I'm the north" he said, 1.-THE muskmelon
Is still the muskmelon; canteloupe Is a
southern name and from the fact that the
canteloupe supply comes largely from below
the Mason-Dixon line the name has gradu-
ally invaded northern markets until at pres
emit the ordinary city man would not think
for n moment of asking for a muskmelon
when he goes Ito a restaurant"
AS | said before, the average marketer has
! begun to distinguish varieties Of the can
teloupe. He knows the famous Rocky Ford
melon from the Usage and the Paul Rose
and he thinks he can distinguish 1t from
the old fashioned Melted Gem. The Rocky
Ford melon is perhaps the most famous OF
any In the market. 1t is grown in Otero
county, Colorado, near Rocky Ford OF the
Arkansas river, where the temperature is
hot, the soil is light and the land can be
supplied by means of irrigation with an I'M
limited quantity Of water at just the tim
when the melon plants are most in need OF
It. Otero county Is indeed the hotbed OF
Colorado. The Rocky Ford melon Is OF
medium size and roughly melted with
green lines. 1t was first shipped In
quantities from Colorado to Chicago about
three years ago. Here its fame grew with
mushroom rapidity. 1t was sweet and OF
excellent flavor and Chicago, having passed
favorably upon II, the shipments reaened lar
Their to the eastward until the Rocky Ford
melon is now the most popular canteloupe
in the markets of Philadelphia, New York
and Boston. This success has largely been
due to the action OF the growers themselves.
They have worked together like a trust.
Their shipments have all been made by a
cooperative association which has taken
particular pains not to oyerstock any single
market. Indeed, so popular has the melon
become that it's seeds have been planted
In many localities throughout the south and
even in Texas, and now melons bearing the
name Rocky Ford come from many different
places, although the only genuine Rocky
Ford Is a product of Colorado.
In this connection there is one Of the lit
tie romances of agriculture. In 1897 a dealer
in New York having a number of Rocky
Ford melons left on his hands, sent the seed
to a friend in Florida who had just lost his
orange crop by freezing. This planter had
been accustomed to picking his fifteen boxes
OF oranges every year from every tree in
his orchards, and II he needed money he had
no trouble In borrowing In advance on his
crop expectations. When his trees were