New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1907-05-06
THE SEED INDUSTRY.
Its Progress in america Fauored by
Soil and Climate.

have not only produced more than half the seed
used In this country, compared with nucli
smaller percentage in former years. but they nave
demonstrated the fact that we have sufficient o-
versity of climate and soil to grow In profusion
any seed which is imported. Most OF the seeus
in the United States are produced in California
where. in the Santa Clara Valley, there Is one
farm alone containing 10000 acres
The variance in the amount of seeds produceu 10
the acre by different plants is great, as some
vegetables will give 200 pounds TO the acre ana
others 1000 5000 pounds A conservative aver
age is 800 pounds to the acre Flowers run 10 ''.0
most remarkable extremes In this yield- SWEET
peas which seed freely than any ho"ei'
sometimes produce 5000 pounds to the acre-a ton
and half OF seeds The double petunia, whlch Is
known TO seed growers as the "shyest seeoeI' VIII
sometimes fail to yield pound to the acre
This inability of the double petunia to hoid Jus
seed makes IL very valuable. Its retail price rs S'V
an ounce 81. a pound 1t is worth more 'laH
ten times its weight in gold This seed Is much
finer than gunpowder and almost as fine as COOKING
-four. II is almost impossible 10 distinguish ,is
separate seeds and Is the most expensive Aii,u
handled by any dealer The cheapest seeds soio
~, the mound are those Of the beet and mustard.
which cost only five cents pound IN pleitiiuA
seasons sweetpeas sometimes sell for seven cents
a pound.
There ia a great difference in price between the
seeds of an unnamed variety of flower or Vese-
table. and so-called novelty whlch sio" I
have produced from the generic plant THESE ho'ei
ties are produced in various ways by seecuo"' W
crossing the seeds and they are sometimes ueFe4-
oped into distinct varieties There are only iorty
original. distinct vegetable families though sos
varieties of vegetable seed sold by retail
dealers.
Each grower produces his variations on the
original forty-two vegetables and the NUMBER oi
new varieties is constantly increasing. With now
ers the work is easier and the scope wider There
1O7 generic flower families to start WITH ana
enterprlsing growers have rung the changes on
their until the number of flower varieties now
sold is ncaculable-
Some vegetables lend themselves 70 Varlaliohs
more readily than others There are seventy-four
varieties of lettuce and thirtyfve kinds OF onions
Beans cabbage corn and tomatoes appear in the
catalogues under twenty five and thirty different
names. Mustard is about the only vegetable that
has remained untouched by the ambitious seed grow
ers Up TO the present time one kind of mustard
has suffced for all our needs.
Sweet peas have eghty-six divisions and more
than three hundred subdivisions In California.
where almost all the flower seeds grown. one
farm of 800 acres is given up to the production OF
sweet peas alone. The total production yearly is
about $4,000 pounds and when this amount Is
augmented by the yield from smaller farms II Is
almost impossible to meet the demand Sweet peas
the most popular flowers in America for home
gardens except the nasturtiums and even these
cannot always compete with the sweet peas Where
country air and sunshine abound sweet peas hold
unrivalled supremacy, and nasturtiums are IN use
for window boxes and scant little city gardens
where small backyard must do duty for the
flower lover.
Pansies are also popular favorite. though their
price Is sometimes high enough 10 be prohihitive-
The ordinary varieties. we'll selected. are not more
than So pound. but of the big velvety ones,
rarely colored. sell for $50 a pound. Most Of the
flowers which produced from seed are sold in
little hve-cent packets. the amounts varying with
the value the seed There about eight
million OF these sold in the United States every
year.
In California almost all the actual labor Of plant
ing and harvesting seeds is done by Chinese and
japanese The overseers Americans. Sut
the little seeds are slowed away by deft Oriental
fingers. TO the tune Of endless Oriental chatter
One big Chnaman in California has had phenom-
email success growing sweetpeas and producing new
varieties. He has more new colors and shapes TO
his credit than any American grower. and his love
for flowers borders on fanaticism.
Twenty-Five years ago by far the largest per-
centage of seeds used In American gardens was
imported from Europe. where the industry has re-
Ceved careful attention than here NOW
there are I5S large seed firms in America. each
handling hundreds OF thousands OF pounds annu-
ally In many instances they have specialized and
handle only kind Of seed Twenty-Five OF these
firms deal only In peas and beans. eight In cab
hages and eight in tomatoes. lettuce. cucumbers.
onions, melons and beets.
The money these firms pay into the Santa Clara
Valley. California. amounts TO more than million
and a half dollars yearly. This valley produces a
and from 100000 to 100000 pounds sold
yearly in the United States, though still much that
is used for gardening is imported. The cauiower
seed IS the most expensive OF all the vegetables.
as il is the most difficult obtain Its wholesale
price is SIS pound. Next TO this in value the
high grade varieties OF beans which cost s. 80 and
50 pound.
Central Michigan and Western New York produce
almost all the bean seed used in this country one
locality IN Michigan produces seventy-hve thousand
nd he New
that number Potatoes and corn are sold so extern
sively that no estimate be made of the amount
produced each year Two million pounds of turnip
seed goes into American soil every season. but
most of il Is imported from England one million
pounds of radish seed are planted here, one-tenth
OF which Is raised in California and the rest in
Europe OF the million pounds of seed onions
which the annual crop demands California yields
seven hundred thousand pounds. and more than
half the million pounds of cabbage seed used in
our crops is grown In our own soil
When IT Is remembered that little hve-cent
package of cabbage seed will make two hundred
plants too many for single garden. ana that each
pound will supply fifty gardens. the enOrmty of
these figures will be realized. or course. many OF
the seeds which are sold do not produce vegetables
as they are prevented by insects impurities of soil
and climatic hardships. but II every seed out
by the seed industry of America fulfilled its mis-
sion every man. woman and child in the United
states could have At least one square meal day
regardless of the Beef Trust.
Corn growing for seed purposes has made great
strides this country, and more of II is sold than
any other kind. An instance of Mother Earth's
kindness to the corn grower Is. shown In the expert
cnce of a prominent seed grower In Ohio. Thirty
five wears ago he had one acre Of land and s.. He
invested the s. in seed corn His profit for his first
years work was only SIS. but he produces
yearly 10000 bushels of corn. and has become ude
pendently rich. John Rankin, Missouri farmer