The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1900-08-07
No. 26


the berry is picked with great care,
The fruit is not touched by the hand.
The cap and stem, a half inch long,
is left on The berries are placed in
quart baskets, which, when full, are
taken to the packing house, wherea
careful assortment is made. All
green fruit and leaves are cast out
and the species kept separate. The
assortment complete, the baskets are
put into a 32-quart crate, hauled to
to the car in spring wagon and
packed, about four inches apart, so
that cold, dry air can circulate
freely. Ice is packed in both ends
and over the entire top of the car
This gives temperature of 40 de-
grees. The car is shipped and if it
arrives on a low market, it is reticed
and held for a better price. New
York and Chicago are popular mar
kets.
The dewberry is a favorite fruit.
It's popularity is on the increase. It
is easier to keep than the strawberry
or the grape, and is quite as delicious
as either. Great quantities of the
dewberry are being produced at
Ridgeway. Eighteen carloads, 443
crates to the car, and 80 quarts to
the crate, were shipped from there
between the 1st and the 28th of last
June. Ten cents per quart was the,
average price.
This berry grows on a climbing
vine. After the crop is gathered the
vine is cut back to the ground in
July. The following spring it comes
out. In April the new growth is
trained around stick The berry
is long, black and sweet. A Bordeaux
mixture-lime and bluestone-is
used as a spray to keep down rust
One cent a quart is paid for picking
the dewberry and over $4,000 was
paid out for that purpose at Ridge
way this year To do well, the plants
must be from 18 inches to two feet
apart. The Ridgeway truckers must
have realized about $4,000 for this
crop of berries.
Messrs. A. j. McKinn.on and w. j.
Mathis, of Maxton, have made
good thing out of cantaloupes this
season From about so acres they
sold 10 carloads, All crates to the
car The lowest price received was
81 and the highest $4 per crate. They
made a handsome profit. Mr.. Nc
Kinnon had in 21 acres of very fine
land, which was in high state of
cultivation. And besides he manured
it we'll from his livery stable. He
grew the famous, small, round,
rough-skinned Rocky Ford canta-
loupe The meat is green in color
and delicious in favor.g Mr. McKin-
non and Mr.. Mathis planted the
cantaloupes at Maxton, as an expert
ment and it has proved a success.
They have found that the soil and
climate of Maxton will produce the
cantaloupes as early as that of Black
Vile, S. G. The prices we're from
81 to 81 so in advance of the Black
vile product this year
The cantaloupes were shipped in
regular Rocky Ford crates, 35 to 40
melons in crate, in refrigerator
cars. Next year the number of acres
in cantaloupes in the Maxtone section
will be ldrgely increased.
Mr.. W. j. Mathis has a 600-acres
watermelon patch near Maxton. He
is now shipping the melons to New
York at the rate Of Is to 20 carloads
per day. The yield and the quality
are good, but the dry weather dur
ing July cut the crop short. Mr.
Mathis cannot tell yet whether he
has made profit or not.
The grape season is now on. The
crop at Southern Pines will be har-
vested within the next few weeks
The Niagara Grape and Fruit Com
pany has 200 acres in grapes and is
the largest shipper. The Niagara
and the Delawares are the chief vari-
eties. DIR. William P. Sweat is Presi-
dent of the Company and Mr.. P. A.
Stebbins, the Treasurer. The cap
ital stock is $4,000, the company
owns spur of railroad track that
connects the Seaboard Air Line with
their vineyard. The grapes are
gathered from the vines, placed in
baskets, selected and packed by Ger
man girls. All rotten grapes are
clipped off before the lunches are