The Opelousas courier., 1902-03-22
|3OTHAM'S BIG GARDEN
e REACHES NOW TO FLORIDA
AND THE PACIFIC.

For the Others Greatly E~xtended-The
Prices Of These Luxuries Lower, Too.
"Lima BEANS" said a man acquainted
With the green vegetable trade, were
,eceived in this city on December Q
rom Florida, and on December II
rom California. There are, in fact,
comparatively few green vegetables
hat cannot now be had the year
round, grown in the open air, some
where within the borders Of our own
country.
when this all-the-year-trade in green
vegetables began to assume considera-
lie proportions, fifteen or twenty years
,r so ago, green peas were the great
Early vegetable luxury, but now we
have beans and squash and so on, just
he same in midwinter as in midsum-
ner, if n wants to &ay for them.
As to the cost Of these Vikings. it is
low only about half whatRt once was,
nously increased. Il
"Things that were once Considered
Ugh Injuries and were Combined by
comparatively few, are now Naten by
many people. The greatly fAcreased
lemand resulted years ago enofp
nously increased production, andaA4sM
n vastly improved facilities for trans
,ortation. And the methods in ship
,ing have in recent years been very
reatly improved, though here there is
oom for great improvement yet.
"Florida is the most advanced among
he Eastern seaboard States in this
respect. She sends stuff in such con-
litton and in such packages that it
comes in good order and car all be
sold after it gets here; no waste.
There's money in this way of doing
business. OF course there are shippers
n other States as well, that send their
fluff to market in perfect shape, but
ret Florida Is on the whole now the
most advanced in the art of shipping.
"a comprehensively novel thing in
his business consists in the practice,
which has sprung up within six OF
sight years, of working the ATTITUDES
10th ways. Formerly when We had
.ad the last Of a thing, grown at the
North, in the early autumn, we waited,
9th a blank space intervening, for the
text of this to come from the far
South, in the winter. But now after
finishing at the North, we begin again
1T Norfolk, where the Temperature
conditions still permit, with crops
just to meet this requirement.
'"These fall crops from this mid-re-
gion help us through that season IN
IL we begin to get things from the far
South, which we now get earlier than
aver, and thus the gap is closed and
here is no season in which we do not
ret open-air-grown green vegetables Of
'Ome kinds.
"An this is true Of many green fruits
Is well, which we now get the year
round or in greatly extended easons
These fruits come, it may be, from
California, or from the various States
llong the Atlantic caast. On this sea-
board the Florida fruit is first, and
ripens with the advancing sun
n one State after another, farther and
North until, with the summer |
iun falling here, we get them from
'ur old-time and one virtually exclu-
i've local and neighboring sources Of
''These early fruits, like the early |
vegetables, are now cheaper than they |
nee were, and for the same reasons |
nd yet some Of them, as for example,
Strawberries. are still beyond
lender purses. On the other hand, |
ONE of them have now been brought
the reach Of all; as for exam
lie, the noble peaches that in good
we get in such splendid profus-
On from Georgia, weeks, if not
months, before we had even begun to
-ream of peaches in the old days, and
his fine and beautiful fruit is so plen-
Iful that it is sold for little If anything
bove ordinary prices. And all this
peach business has come about
Practically with half a dozen years.
Coming back to green vegetables
or just a minute, one among those not
ow supplied the year around is that
luxury, green corn; though
he period through which this may be
ad Is steadily frightening, and it ex-
ends now, in fact, from February to
rost. Corn will no doubt be, in time,
1cluded among the vegetables to be
ad the year around. The February
reen corn that we get, which is not
luch yet, comes from Florida.
'"Then in May we begin to get corn in
ONE quantities, comparatively speak
lg, from North Carolina, this being
omething new. Then, early in June
re begin to get South Jersey corn, and
hen it keeps coming to us farther and
north till we begin to get it
our own actual latitude, from
,ong Island and from North Jersey,
nd New York State, up the North
liver, and from various regions as
ar north as the State Of Baine.
$50, you see, counting the present
reen corn season, not as from Febru-
ry to frost, for we get, as yet, but
tile corn from Florida, it is practical
from May to frost; six months, or
aereabouts."-New York Sun.