1.S4 ri-.\XT MFK <>K AI.AMAMA. 



tluvsf r'ucrs. ill tlir coiiiilics <>t' ( '<i\ iiit^ion ami ( iciicva, and tin' lower 

 pari of ( 'oil re. 1 )ali'. ami I lciii\ . alxtiit 1 •> per ctnt i^ under cult i\ at ion. 

 'I'lie lariic areas of the faiiii lands are used for the pasture of cattle and 

 slieej), which are left without attention to loaiii throuLihout the open 

 ])iiie forests and iiiter\ ciiiiiti' swamps. The people of these sparsely 

 iiihal»ited I'eLiioii:? depend for their lix'eliiiood mostly u|)on the tiniher 

 and the resinous pi'oductsof t he lon<ileaf })ine for<'sts. 'I'he land uiuler 

 culti\ation is de\(»ted principally to the grow ine* of food ci"oi)s. chietly 

 eorn, sweet })otatoes. rice, with som(> su^'ar cane, the several products 

 scarcely sutlicin*;' to meet the home demiind. It is only of late years 

 that the ])ossibilities of the soil of the better class of pine lands have 

 receixcd a proper appreciation. Wherever the sandy loams rest upon 

 a more retentive, somewhat clayey subsoil, these lands, with th(> help 

 of a slight outlay for fertilizers, never fail to give satisfactory returns 

 to the tiller. In the few localities where the experiment has Ixmmi made 

 the eultivation of cotton has proved successful. The tropical sugar 

 cane is grown on every farm for the production of the largely con- 

 sunu'd table sirup and raw sugar to cover the needs of the homestead. 

 On the best of the pine land this crop will prove to be profitable, if 

 undertaken on a more extensive scale. For on these lands the cultiva- 

 tion of the sugar cane is easier and less expensive than on the heav}'^ 

 alluvial lands, which frequentl}^ require large outlays for drainage. 

 Moreover, the cane grown on these pine lands yields a juice of great 

 purity and rich in crvstallizable sugar. 



AVith the increased facilities for transportation to distant northern 

 markets, much attention has been given to truck farming all along the 

 railroad lines, and the large shipments of cabbages and Irish potatoes 

 and other \egetables and fruits made every spring show the increasing 

 importance of this industry. Among fruits, strawberries and water- 

 melons are raised in large quantities for shipment. On the rolling 

 pine lands, with a suitable subsoil, peaches and grapes under proper 

 modes of cultivation, succeed well. 



This industry of truck farmijig is carried on most extensively on the 

 Coast plain. Upon this low land, where the winter climate is tempered 

 by the proximity of the sea, the warm, sandy loams produce crops which 

 reach th(Mr perfection at an- earlier date and with less risk of injury by 

 frosty weather. During the winter and early spring the extensive iields 

 of cabbages present a most peculiar compact plant formation of a bien- 

 nial member of the Brassica tri})e, alternating with a tub.'r-l)earing, 

 solanaceous annual — the Irish potato. The planting season of the vari- 

 ous crops of earh^ vegetables for northern markets extends from the 

 middle of October to the middle of March. The mean temperature of 

 this period averages about 57'-', with a mean of all the monthly highest 

 temperatures of 78^ for the coldest part of the growing season — De- 

 cember to February; conditions highly favorable foi- starting and fur- 



