NORTH CAKOLINA 



is a region dear to botanical collectors for its wonderful 

 flora auU of great interest to the horticulturist on 

 account of its capacity for the production of fruit espe- 

 cially of apples. Here the apple flourishes and pro- 

 duces the most wonderful and uniform crops under 

 conditions of absolute neglect. What could be done 

 here in the production of apples, with careful and mtel- 

 figen culture and proper handling of the product, has 

 been abundantly sho^vn in the experience of t^e fe« 

 who have attempted the culture. In this same region 

 the French wine and table grapes have been flour.shmg 

 for year., grafted on the native stocks A complete 

 failure of the apple crop has never been known in the 

 mountains of North Carolina. On the eastern slope of 

 the Blue Ridge are found the thermal belts. Ihese 

 belts are on the mountain slopes and are singularly 

 free from the effects of early frosts in the autumn and 

 late frosts in the spring; in fact, hoar f^sts are a most 

 unknown. The cold air settling down in the ^ aliey^ 

 pushes up the warm air and prevents frost above a cer- 

 tain linc'^thus insuring the safety of fruit foye^^e 

 frost line. These belts are peculiarly marked m Polk 

 and Wilkes counties. In the high valley lands of Wa- 

 tauga and Ashe counties, lying 3,500 to 4,000 feet above 

 the sea, are meadows where the finest of cranberries 

 grow wild, and on the northern and western slopes ot 



NORTH CAKOLINA 



1093 



and Delawares; they go north early in July, and the 

 business has been a profitable one. Later it was found 

 that the peach flourished on the sand-hills even better 

 than the grape, and that there is seldom a total failure 

 of the fruit. In the same neighborhood there are now 

 at least 1,000 acres in peaches, -over 400 acres in one 

 orchard. Shipments begin here about the first week in 

 June, and in some seasons the Sueed peach is ready 

 the last of May. A large area is being devoted to black- 

 berries and strawbe 

 sent from here bcfu 

 York. Here. tn.i. ii 

 ported so lar^'. ly Idl- 

 ing, such as lilii -. K 

 be grown to Ki-^-at ]■ 

 made with the Lttru, 

 bulbs can be prodi 



also, as blackberries can be 

 strawberries are ripe in New 



, iiii.' f.iuu.! tlKit thp bulbs im- 



,,n. j;.\|i.-niiMiil- are being 

 ly, and It is hniM-il that the 



U...U, v-^ «., r e" early enough for the early 



forcing, and that we may be able to grow healthy bulbs 

 to take the place of the diseased Bermuda stock. 



Horticulturally, the most interesting part of the 

 state is the great level coast plain. Here the mellow 

 soil mild climate and abundant rainfall combine to 

 make conditions favorable to great production, espe- 

 cially in the culture of small fruits. Along the line of 

 the Atlantic Coast Line R. R. strawberries are grown 

 by the thouMud acres and the culture has brought 



the mountains m Mitchell county there are acres of 

 lilv of the \allev and T tola tenella, native and to the 

 manor born On the exposed uplands of this section the 

 grape and the peach flimrish in wonderful luxuriance, 

 though nothing has been done with these in the way of 

 commercial culnire. In these upper mountain counties 

 of late rears the cabbage and the potato have become 

 importniit frirm t.-i.^, the produce being sent '" *•- 



nth.- 



inter. The mountain section 

 lut undeveloped, region horti- 

 of the great barrier of the 

 ; wide rolling nplan.ls of the 



1493 North Carohna showine horticultural ree'ons 

 wealth to the growers This too is the section where 

 the greater pirt of the tuberove bulbs used b\ florists 



Pied 



ohing i 



of the coast pla 

 from l,.iO0 feet above the sea-hv. 1 > i : intams 



to about 350 where it drops otV iin" lii- i' • I ',) 

 plain bordering the coast for 112.'. lu I..11 iiiil.-s nilaiid. 

 Throughout this region cotton has held undisputed 

 swav for many years except on the northern border, 

 where tobacco has taken its place, and each has shut 

 out much enterprise of a horticultural nature. Still, in 

 some parts of the vast middle section there have been 

 efforts to grow fruits, and in this section are the im- 

 portant nurseries of the state. Near the edge of this 

 upland country, where the clay uplands break up into 

 the rolling forests of long-leaf pine, and swelling sand- 

 hills take the place of the red clay, it has been found 

 that the dry soil and balmy winter climate were partic- 

 ularly favorable to those suffering from lung and throat 

 troubles, and many people from the North, having 

 found health there, remained to make homes on the 

 sand-hills. And making homes, they wanted to grow 

 fruit. Then it was discovered that the sand-hill coun- 

 trv could be made to grow the finest of grapes, and 

 now about the town of Southern Pines there are fully 

 1.000 acres devoted to the culture of grapes for ship- 

 ment north. These are table grapes, mainly Niagaras 



ture ot c il I hull 1 11 in 11 11 1 



tuberou'? cr I Hi « iiit 1 i ult iin t I ttii 111 11 1 



covered with cloth ind ^Uss h is of 1 vte become a %erv 



important item in the gardener s list of crops in this 



section It takes but little piotection here to grow -" 



winter lettuce as fine as th it j " 



m the North and the nil 



mikes the selling a sure 111 ' 



grow here is the shippm^ n 



of narcissus and Roniin li 



the open griund in I t 



great bushes 111 th 1 u -' 



coa t IS at Ni wl n '1' ' 



sorbs the entin iit n'l " ' 



I heited houses 



imes and 



, , I ,11 iiniiii r Near the 

 1 1 1 t _ irden business ab 

 t ilti\ itors From this 

 t \ t il les of all kinds in 

 tre"s;ring';nT e.ri\' summer o^er $4 000 000 worth 

 annualh and the business is increasing steadily With 

 the coming of a dense population the great swamps 

 that now co-s er hundreds of square miles will be 

 drained and more lind of inexhaustible fertilitj will 

 be added to this fertile region here will be located the 

 future bulb farms of the United States and the dealers 



