The Hawaiian gazette., 1902-10-28
FARMERS
MEET At
WAH|AWA

| ! nave Thought a hflpt summary ol
statistics on vegetable growing. as Civ
en- in the Twelfth United states Census
Report. just to hand. may be suggestive
and of interest in showing the magni-
tude Of this branch of agriculture in
the United States.
The total acreage and value OF vege-
tables, including field crops of Irish and
sweet potatoes. for 1899 is placed at
5.'53.l9l acres, being per cent of all
farm crops for that year, their value
being estimated at s2i2.170,lis, or SO
per cent of all farm crops; making an
average value of $500 per acre for
vegetables as against 1904 per cent for
other crops. or this immense acreage.
slightly more than so per cent was de-
voted to Irish potatoes Next come
sweet potatoes with an acreage. includ-
ing that OF vans, of 537.4i7, and the
value of the crop is stated to be $l9.
$4,000. Sweet potatoes, as you know,
cannot be successfully grown over so
wide a territory as the Irish potato, its
extensive production being confined
mainly to the Southern States and Cali
fornia. These sections, however, seem
to supply all home demands under or
binary conditions, and IL therefore does
not seem likely that Hawaii need look
to the mainland for an outlet of this
crop. The onion crop comes third in
Importance, the area of 1883 acres
valued at s6.637,62 an average value
of $l3S.33. This may seem at first
thought a promising field for our Ha-
waiian trucker, yet, my California eX-
perlence leads me to believe that we
cannot compete successfully with the
mainland in onion growing. Our eli
mate may be favorable, in fact we have
grown choice bulbs of a half dozen
varieties at Eamehameha, but in gem
eral our soils are as yet too raw for
this eXacting crop, except II be In limit
ed areas. However. we should by all
means supply our home Demand
doubtless herein an opportunity awaits
some skilled gardener.
OF miscellaneous vegetables grown
for the market, an acreage of 1175,2O0
is reported OF the above, Hawaii and
Alaska are accredited with 1,521 acres.
The total value of the produce is given
as S221,746 an average of sl49.73 per
acre. Unfortunately these two new
territories have been thrown together
in the census report. thus depriving us
of more exact statistics for Hawaii.
Also have | been unable to obtain
imports of vegetable products, but l
have no doubtsbut that a good many
thousands of dollars in hard cash are
annually exchanged for stale vegetables
and canned goods that might be grown
here. and of superior quality. That the
present state of affairs should not exist
must be apparent to all thinking men,
and the wonder is that our enterprising
Chinese gardeners have not brought a
change ere this. 1t seems to me the
opportunity for superior intelligence
and skin, and / base my conclusions
on years residence and experience,
during which time I have seen long
list of vegetables successfully grown
here | do not remember seeing finer
string beans, table beets, colards,
sweet corn, endive. cucumbers, egg
plants, leeks, lettuce musk and water
melons, okra, onions, peppers, pump
kins. radishes, satisfy, Swiss chard,
squash and tomatoes, than we exhib
tied at our recent Territorial fair and
elsewhere in the vicinity of Honolulu,
not emitting Wahiawa. But no syste-
matte effort seems to have been made
to supply our home wants by anyone
excepting. perhaps, the Chinese gard
eners, and variety, with them, is woe
fully lacking. 1t requires judgment
and SKILL this intensive farming which
secures a continuous succession of first
class vegetables in great variety. But
cannot Wahiawa colony become equal
tc the fullest requirements. l think so
most decidedly, and your good begin
nings under difficulties are our best
promise for the future. / shall watch
your development along this particular
line with special interest-it has become
a hobby with me.
! shall not attempt to tell you how TO
make "a fortune on half an acre in half
as many years because none os you
would follow my directions, nor shall
follow the old time monthly garden
calendar idea which gave the minutest
instruction to every detail in gardening
operations; happily the day is passing
when the chief aim of books is to save
one the trouble of thinking In no
other calling aslin ours, with its con-
stantly varying conditions, are there
better teachers than the personal OBJ
servations and deductions obtained in
practical experience harnessed to the
suggestive helps from our National De-
partment of Agriculture, the Agricul-
tural colleges, and experimental sta
tions, the Agricultural press and, last
but OF least, from Farmers Institutes
like ours, which give mutual strength
and inspiration for further work.
Science and practice are each year
becoming better friends. We are no
longer satisfied in knowing how to hoe
irriSate or fertili2e our crops, but we
must know the why as wen. And |
cannot do better than to touch upon
some Of the broad underlying princl-
pies OF agriculture as |ey must equal
| ly apply To vegetable gardening, and
perhaps suggest factors that may apply
10 your conditions,
| Soil is the foundation ana climate the
roof of the farm, ANA yege, BILE garden
In Is farming intensified, But to the
market gardener the selection OF a
! favorable location Is as Important as
the soil, More mighty than Art is Ma
ture,"o yet much can be done 10 improve
a deficient soil, Great as is the value