2218 NORTH AMERICAN STATES 



NORTH AMERICAN STATES 



were: 11,965 acres of tomatoes, valued at $495,773; 

 3,058 acres of spinach, valued at $489,170; 8,680 acres 

 of cabbage, valued at $487,334; 1,766 acres of cucum- 

 bers, valued at $177,254; 2,867 acres of green beans. 

 valued at $167,199; 3,159 acres of watermelons, valued 

 at $136,898; 1,013 acres of kale, valued at $115,658; 

 969 acres of cantaloupes and muskmelons, valued at 

 $83,148; 2,101 acres of sweet corn, valued at $73,050; 

 and 787 acres of onions, valued at $59,524. Vegetables, 

 the value of which was between $10,000 and $50,000, 

 are as follows : asparagus, $31,205 eggplant, $20,430; let- 

 tuce, $24,187; radishes, $19,842; and turnips, $22,582. 

 Vegetables of less importance are beets, parsley, pump- 

 kins, rhubarb, rutabagas, and squash. 



The acreage devoted to the production of flowers and 

 plants increased from 143 in 1899 to 375 in 1909. The 

 area under glass in 1909 was 1,413,170 square feet, of 

 which 1,315,388 were covered by greenhouses, and 

 97,782 by sashes and frames. The value of the flowers 

 and plants produced in 1909 was $362,488, as compared 

 with $238,712 in 1899. 



Nursery products decreased in acreage from 1,200 

 in 1899 to 569 in 1909, when the production was valued 

 at $159,992, as compared with $214,988, the value in 



H. L. PRICE. 



West Virginia. 



From a horticultural standpoint, West Virginia 

 (Fig. 2511) presents many unique features and unde- 

 veloped possibilities. From the crest of the Alleghany 

 Mountains to the waters of the Shenandoah River on 

 the east and the Ohio River on the west, there is a dif- 

 ference in elevation of about 4,000 feet. The effect of 

 this range in elevation is to furnish a climate with as 

 much variation as might normally be found between 



25 50 75 100 125 



STATUTE M/LZS 



COMMERCIAL f*EAC* AMD 



COMMfffC/Ai 



2511. West Virginia, showing the regions of horticultural 

 adaptabilities. 



Vermont and the Carolinas. As might be expected, the 

 horticultural flora of the state is very extensive and the 

 matter of varietal adaptation is one of great importance. 

 The Baldwin and Northern Spy apples, when grown in 

 Preston County at an elevation of 3,000 feet or more, 

 are similar to the well-known New York and New 

 England product, but when grown in the Shenandoah 

 Valley they attain a very large size, ripen with the 

 early fall varieties, are coarse hi texture, poor in quality 

 and can be kept only a few weeks even in storage. 



West Virginia has long been known as a producer of 

 coal, oil, gas, and lumber, but in recent years the rapid 

 development of the orchard industry has raised the 

 state to a place of importance among the leading fruit- 

 producing states. The Census report for 1910 indicated 

 that West Virginia ranked twelfth among the states in 

 the production of apples, and the government estimate 



for 1914 showed only seven other states exceeding 

 West Virginia in the production of apples for that year. 

 The peach industry is making similar gains, but is less 

 extensive as a whole than the apple industry. 



The horticultural industries of the state are unequally 

 divided between fruit-growing and trucking, the former 

 predominating. The leading fruits are the apple and 

 peach, with the cherry forming a poor third. Pears, 

 plums, grapes, and berries are grown in some sections 

 to quite an extent, but the commercial plantings are 

 somewhat scattered and the products are largely sold 

 locally. The commercial apple districts are found in 

 the eastern Panhandle, the northern Panhandle and 

 along the Ohio River, and a small district is located near 

 the southern boundary of the state. This does not 

 mean that these are the only parts of the state pro- 

 ducing apples, for scattering commercial orchards, 

 many of them containing 100 acres or more, are found 

 here and there in nearly every county. The peach 

 industry, on the other hand, belongs to six counties of 

 the eastern Panhandle, Hampshire, Mineral, Morgan, 

 Berkeley, Hardie, and Grant. Outside of this region, 

 with the exception of a few orchards along the Ohio 

 River, the industry is purely local. The orchards of the 

 state are all located upon rather rough mountain or 

 hill land, with the exception of those in the Shenandoah 

 Valley, where they are grown upon comparatively level 

 or gently rolling limestone or shale soils. 



The varieties of fruit vary somewhat with the sec- 

 tion of state in which they are grown. In the Shen- 

 andoah Valley the York Imperial has long been the 

 favorite. The "big, red, lopsided apple" finds a ready 

 market in the southern and eastern cities and is also 

 highly esteemed for export purposes. It sometimes 

 scalds badly in storage, and more recent plantings have 

 cut down the proportion of this variety. Next to the 

 York Imperial rank the Ben Davis and its first cousin, 

 the Gano, but these are planted in relatively small 

 numbers at the present time. The Stayman Winesap, 

 Arkansas (Mammoth Black Twig), Grimes, Winesap, 

 Jonathan, Delicious, and Northwestern follow in about 

 the order named. As one ascends the slope of the Alle- 

 ghany Mountains, the Rome and Baldwin appear, while 

 in the highest altitudes the Baldwin, Tompkins King, 

 Rhode Island, Fallawater, and Northern Spy are found 

 in abundance. Along the Ohio River and, in fact, over 

 the entire western slope of the Alleghanies, the Rome 

 finds a home perfectly adapted to its needs and con- 

 sequently it is a ruling favorite in this whole region. 

 Following the Rome, the other varieties are much the 

 same as are found in the eastern Panhandle. Hancock 

 County, at the northern extremity of the state, is 

 peculiar in that it grows the Willow almost exclusively. 

 This county early developed a system of common 

 storage to which the long-keeping Willow was admi- 

 rably adapted. The major part of the fruit from this 

 county is placed in cellars, caves, and frame storage 

 houses and is taken out in April and May in first-class 

 condition for market. In the southern part of the state, 

 the Stayman Winesap, Rome, York Imperial, Ben Davis, 

 Grimes, and Jonathan are the best commercial varieties. 

 In none of the regions are summer varieties grown exten- 

 sively upon a commercial scale, although a few scattered 

 plantings of Yellow Transparent may be found. 



The peach industry is confined to a single section and 

 embodies two very general soil types, chert and shale. 

 The former is endowed with more abundant fertility 

 and produces large, heavy-bearing trees. The shale 

 soils require feeding but respond readily to applications 

 of nitrate of soda or manure. The varieties are very 

 much the same in all orchards and consist largely of the 

 following: Carman, Champion, Belle, Elberta, Smock, 

 and Salway. 



Peach- and apple-orcharding in West Virginia has 

 developed along extensive rather than intensive lines. 

 Individual growers frequently operate 200 to 300 acres, 



