The Montgomery advertiser., 1902-12-19
TRUCK FARMS
RICH FIELDS OF VIRGINIA. THE
 CAR0LINAS AND FLORIDA.
Fleet of Boats Employed-Industry. Tradition Said, Was Inspired by
 . Notable Mint Julep-Im-
 msnss Yearly Production.

Trucking in the South, strange to say, had tts inception in a mint julep, writes Helen Gray, in The Sunny South. Pos sibly this famous beverage will never The story goes that clerk on a steam boat running to Charleston remarked to one of his boon companions as they slipped the mountain dew that there was no ,.s oompa5,sos between 1t and nd tS the mint mint ment he would bring mint on the next voyage and give them the opportunity of testing his worda When the next trip was Concluded to his delighted compan- ions he displayed, in an old champagne basket. not only mint, but radishes. let tuce and strawberries. The berries found their way to . shop window and were the first ever seen by New Workers In
 This was in 1sE7.. For forty years now truok farming h the South has been an important Industry. It is said that there are more than so.6oe Fsfrissrator cars en- truck Q the Uaitsd statss and Canada, of whieh the South doubtless can claim the lartsgt share of business. V nile the first all-rail shipment reached New York slS% Nstaa so4sok and n 4 sesan i the fifties. and 900 barrel-loads of truck were shipped to New York. Gradually the trade increased unt II reached its Goa Who eams So~n from NeS Jersey in 1S44. was the first to make success of the industry, and to him has been given the appsliation of the Father of Truckers"
 Along the Tidswater.
 The truck farms of tidewater Virginia, tiguous to the cities of Norfolk and Portsmouth. have a reputation that has reached far beyond the gates of their own State. The greatest trucking country in tho rVnrlA rrohahiv A hullAttn A. gently issued by the Department of Az riculture at Washington, extends from Norfolk along the Atlantic Coast to the southern part of Florida. and of this not mouth are the greatest garden truck cen- ters; Charleston coming second, followed by Wilmington, famous for Its lettuce fields. The soil of this district Is unsur- passed. being for the most part light sandy foam with . subsoil of clay. The closeness of the Gulf Stream, which runs within 50 miles of the shore, tempers the climate, while the numerous little furnish excellent transportation facin- ties. It is said that no farm in tidewater Is more than three miles from a navi- gable bit of water. and most of them are immediately on waterways.
 The busiest season in tidewater is from the middle of May up to August, Then the mosquito feet" as the upward of 20oo small craft which transport garden LIuCk IO Ltl9 t8IkST 6t4ALueES UO D6 COus veyed to Northern markets is picturesque ly called. makes its appearance in full force. and a buster scepe could hardly be ina agined.
 Virginia Truck Farms.
 Oysters and peanuts and hams. fruits tidewater famous. A visit to one of the farms in this section will prove a reve- lation. One of the most celebrated Is the A.. H. Lindsay farm. located about ten miles out of PortsmoMh on the edge of the Dismal Swamp. The yield of corn on this farm this year will be 6o,000 bushels. shelled, and of good grade magnih- cent crop it is. and grown without the use of commercial fertilizers.
 The crop will be shipped to Europe. The bulk of 1t will go to Germany, where 1t will be used as seed corn for ensilage 1t does not mature. The estate, which comprises 5000 ac-es. is divided into sep arate farms, all under one management. The present owner was in possession of the property in the days of slave labor, when only enough produce was raised for home consumption. The farm is on a branch of the Elizabeth River, a lighter being kept busy the year round carrying produce to Norfolk. There is no season of the yearw hen some crop is not being marketed. Several crops are ire quently raised on the same land in one season. A field of waving corn was point ed out, from which. carrier in the sea- son. had been gathered a crop of potatoes. and later would be planted in rye.
 The majority of truck farms on the Atlantic seaboard are comprised of be- tween ten and fifteen acres. Others con- tain upwards of 100. A scientifically cared-for ten-acre farm will frequently yield 5000 worth of garden truck in a season.
 On the Lindsay Farm.
 The staple crops on the Lindsay farm are corn, Irish potatoes, wheat and straw berries In the berry season as many as 300 hands may often be seen gathering the crop The estate contains 1000 or more acres of forest, in which cattle are kept. An additional 26o sheep have been added to the herd this year. owing to prices being better than ever before. Hogs are also raised. Some extra \ss speci- mems were exhibited. Occasionally a stray bear from the Dismal Swamp is caught on the edge of the forest
 One of the many attractions of tidewa- ter Virginia is it's splendid shell roads. which reach out in all directions. The drive to the farm Is through delightful bits of woodland-here a cotton patch and there a field of peanuts. A negro cabin painted sky blue gave humorous touch. Cabbage and kale wre coming on. The village of Deep Creek, so famed be- fore the war for its shingles, was passed, as was also the Dismal Swamp canal. with its whisky colored water, stained by the juice of Juniper trees.
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