The Wilmington morning star., 1944-10-02
Carolina Farm Comment


WEST JEFFERSON, Oct. l.
Ashe county's night life centers
la. gely about the Farmers Bean
and Vegetable Market established
here on July S, 1943, and remain.
ing open the past two summers as
long as snapbeans are picked and
sold.
The market opens for the day
at just about shutdown or around
7 o'clock and from then until mid
night it is scene of orderly con.
fusion. Trucks back up to the long
shed comprising the market and
farmers unload sack after sack OF
delicious, tender beans picked that
day and still carrying the vigor OF
mountain soil and moisture
The beans are graded by an ex-
pert from the state division OF
markets and a fair sample is plac.
ed in a hamper on a long table
set up at one end of the market
shed. When the table has been
covered with these sample ham.
pers, the buyers crowd around and
begin to inspect the beans.
I The producers crowd up too, be.
cause they are interested in what
happens to the days picking. J.
E. Rowland, secretary-treasurer oil
the auction, then mounts on his
improvised throne at the end oil
the table and the buying begins.
It's all very impromptu. Row.
land knows each buyer personally
and he knows most of the growers.
He beams down at them like a
benevolent Santa Claus and his as.
sistant at the table reads the card
in that particular hamper. Forty
bushels, grading 65." he calls. The
buyers pick up a handful of the
beans, snaps one or two to test
their crispness and freshness and
the bidding begins.
Rowland may start the bidding
but he keeps a sharp watch fol
the slight winks, the mods, h {
quick glance or other sign whic
tells him that the particular buyer
has met the bid and wants the
beans. It takes only a few seconds
to bid off that lot and the assistant
moves to the next and SO on unit
the table is cleared.
Then comes the task Of clearing
up the sold beans and moving them
into hampers for shipment. As
quickly as the table is cleared, il
is filled again and the sales &C
until the midnight hour or until
all the beans picked that day have
been sold. All sales are competi
tive.
Some of the beans go to the
Army posts in the state, many &C
to the fresh bean market of the
lower south, and some 60 to the
canning factories of Maryland and
other states.
So far this season, the little auc.
ton market has sold 1892 bush
els and. will continue until frost
kills the vines and there is nc
further picking.
The price received by the farm.
ers runs from SIPS to $500 bush.
Ell and above, with the average be.
ing about $19O bushel. This
means that the Ashe county grow.
ers have received about S288, 1852
for their bean crop so far this
season.
Actually, they have received
more than that, because there is
no imported labor for the picking.
Early last winter, Roy H. Grouse,
county farm agent for the State
College Extension Service, held his
educational meetings all over the
county at which time plans for
handling the crop were made.
He arranged with ."haulers" who
bring in fluid milk to the local
Kraft cheese factory and with 9th.
er owners of trucks to contact the
peope in their neighborhoods and
haul surplus labor to the bean
fields as needed this summer.
There is quite labor surplus In
some Of the mountain communities
and all they need is days notice.
These people feel that they
should help one another in times
of emergency and while they would
not 10 out and pick for a large
grower they will help their neigh.
bors. The growers pay 40 cents
hamper and since between 4, 0Ot
and 5000 hampers are sold each
day, this means that about 50, 00(
a day for picking stays right ir
the county.
Grouse says between 1000 ano
$500 acres of snapbeans, mostly
Of the tendergreen variety, are
planted in Ashe county. There are
in addition, about ESQ acres of pole
beans, about 400 acres Of late cab