TRUCK GROWING IN NORTH CAROLINA. 



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W. N. HuTT, S. B. Shaw, and O. M. Clark. 



INTRODUCTION. 



Forty years ago, truck growing was in its infancy. Such vegetables 



as were grown commercially were produced by market gardeners living 



in close proximity to towns and large cities. In the South Atlantic 



States little attention was given this business because of the general 



lay-out of the farms and the staple crops under cultivation. In 



the neighborhood of Savannah, Ga., Charleston, S. C, Wilmington 



and New Bern, J^. C, and K"orfolk, Va., where water transportation 



was available, some of the less perishable vegetables, as cabbage and 



potatoes, were grown for northern markets, but the more tender sorts 



were planted only for the local market. To-day these conditions are 



almost the reverse. The growth and development of towns and cities 



has caused such a sharp advance in adjacent land valuations that market 



gardeners have had to seek" more remote fields, where they have become 



specialists in the production of certain truck crops. The railroads, 



realizing the possibilities in the development of this new phase of 



gardening, have extended their lines and improved transportation 



facilities to such an extent that it is not uncommmon to find on the 



northern markets, at almost any season of the year, vegetables that 



have been grown in the field in some southern locality. Ideal soil and 



climatic conditions, cheap lands; and easy access to good transportation 



facilities have made truck growing along the coastal plain of the South 



Atlantic States one of the most important branches of horticultural 



work. 



SOILS. 



Vegetables can be grown on almost any type of soil, if the land is 

 well prepared and supplied with a sufficient amount of available plant 

 food. The ideal truck soil is a mellow, well-drained loam. There is 

 much advantage in having the land level, or nearly so, as cultivation 

 is more easily carried on and there is less loss of fertility through 

 leaching and surface washing during heavy rains. Suitable soil for the 

 intensive cultivation of almost any truck crop can be found in the 

 coastal plains from Florida to New Jersey. The light clay-loam 

 ridges, level sandy flats, and black peaty bottoms which are all found 

 there offer a variety of soils for the successful production of most 

 vegetable crops. There are, however, some limited areas of fine truck- 

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