The Fulton County news. [volume] (McConnellsburg, Pa.) 1899-current, 1906-03-28
GROWING suMAc.
The Passing OF sn Important
Product OF the Farmer.


The passing of the sumac business
one Of the noticeable features in ON
East Virginia agriculture. Some tweut
or thfty years ago this was an In
portant by-product of the farm,
throughout the eastern half of III.
Snte. and large quantities of the a,
ticle were cured every year, especiam
in the regions tributary to the cltle
of Petersburg, Richmond and Fred
ericksburg. In each of which citia
there We're several mills establshqI
for grinding the raw product.
But either on account of the uncer
tainty of the animal supply and fiuctu
alton of prices or because the foreign
sumac, being admitted duty free
proved TOO strong competitor. The
Virginia industry soon began to Ian
guish, and has now become practicalh
extinct.
OF course there were, and are, rea
sons for this decadence. Our peops
are generally at no loss to find profit
able employment for their best skin
and labor. And as no attempt wa,
made to advance the business by cult.
walton or TO give the plant that atten.
tlon which every staple really demand,
in order to make a good profit, it is no,
surprising that the business did NOT
continue to hold the vantage it had
gained. And now, unfortunately. Il
has, for the time at least, passed away,
and one of the resources of our farm,
that might have been made quite prot
table promises to become again one
of the neglected things.
Yet the time may come once more
when it will be found advisable and
profitable 10 revive this branch of ru.
raj industry at the South. There Il |
reason to believe. were proper pain,
taken to grow the sumac plant and
cultivate it in orchards the same as
fruit trees are cultivated, that it would
prove to be immensely profitable. The
plant grows here luxuriantly. and even
in the wild state, where it is crowded
and lmpeded by other plants. it yields
a large quantity of leaves. One hand
operating along the forest sides and
hedges, may collect several hundred
pounds of the green leaves in day.
The process of curing it is as simple
as that of curing hay OF course, were
culture resorted to, the yield would be
greatly increased, and a hand could
gather much more of it in day.
The gathering and curing is a work
that would suit well the women. chill
dren and feebler members of family
and thus another branch of industry
would be opened up, 10 give profitable
employment and bring in extra diinest
to oul industrious and deserving rural.
lists. This is consideration of con
siderable Importance.
The sumas-the variety 1sed for tan
ming purposes-is a plant that grows
and thrives well on poor land. A ma
tive here, like the field pea, it seems
admirably adapted to our Southern con
ditions and agriculture. 1t would he
an easy matter to plant the roots in
long rows for orchard culture. Being
a shrub, a great many of the plants
could be set upon an acre Of land and
one or two p'owings during the earlier
part of the summer no doubt would be
ample cultivation for the crop. The
intervals between the rows might be
sown annually to scarlet clover or cow
peas, for stock to Craze upon, and for
the benefit of the sumac orchard. No
stock would browse upon or harm the
sum bush, and, in this way, many an
acre Of wild land might be converted
into good pasturage and become
source of revenue from the harvesting
of sumac.
The present source of the sumac
supply of this country seems to be
Sicily and other countries o. the Med-
terranean. The supply is not equal to
the demand. A good authority states
that the percentage of tannin liz the
imported srmac is not equal to thar
Of the Virginia leaf, while the amount
Of sand is greater. Good samples of
Virginia sumac yield thirty to thirty
five per cent. Of tanic acid. and are
practically free from sand. Were the
industry revived, and due PAINS taken
in the cultivation of the plant and the
curing of the leaves, there Is no doubt
but the quality and quantity of our
own staple would soon force all for.
eign sumac from our markets.
At the same time the large and ever
increasing demand in this country for
material for tanning purposes would
insure to the American sumac grower
a ready and profitable market for all
lie could produce. A steady demand
at stable prices could be counted on
Thus, in another field of industry, our
people would find exercise for their
skill. and the home merchant and man
ufacturer would become independent
of foreign trade.-Home and Farm.