LOUISIANA. 



luvial laiifls of soiith Lraiisiana tlie 

 siii^ar experinier.tal station has for sev- 

 eral years averaged o\er 100 bushels per 

 aere uiioii a tield of eis'it or ten aeres 

 Sixty to ninety bushels have been ob- 

 tained at the state experiment station at 

 IJaton Roufre upon the bluff lands, and 

 thirty io sixty bushels are the average 

 yields upon the rotation fields of the 

 north Louisiana exper'nient station, situ- 

 ated at Calhoun, upou the yellow sandy 

 loams of tli^ oak and short-leaf pine 

 hills. 



One caution is needed in planting 

 grains of all kinds hei-e. that is, for a 

 general crop use home-grown, acclimated 

 seed. E. tr., corn grown here is planted 

 in early March and harvested in August 

 and Septemlier, while seed from the ex- 

 treme north planted at the same time 

 will probably mature in May, and that, 

 too, with only a partial crop. Wheat 

 and oats, per contra, planted in the fall" 

 from seed raised in the extreme north, 

 will not ripen beft re Tune or July, if at 

 all (the rust frequently destroying it 

 before ripening), while home-raised seed 

 sown at the s^.me time, will be ready 

 for harvest in Mny. If, therefore, we 

 desire an early ciop of corn, we obtain 

 seed from the north, and if an early 

 crop of oats, wh -at, barley or rye be 

 desired, we send south for the seed. Tlie 

 reasons are obvious, when we remembc- 

 tliat each conies to us inheriting the 

 habits of the country froii which it came. 

 In the north the summers are short and 

 the time of the growth of the corn is, 

 therefore. Minted. In the scmth, the 

 winters are shoi't, and, therefore, the 

 period of repose is materially shortened 

 and early maturity follows. This in- 

 volves the whole question of acclima- 

 tion. In Loi 'siana. under good culture, 

 the corn crop will always be from twenty 

 to 100 bushels per acre. 



Ueriuuu auil cat-tail millets, the 

 sorghums, both saccharine and non- 

 saccharine, clovers, grasses and root 

 proi)s, cow peas, teosinte and other for- 

 age crops can be grown over the entire 

 state in larger quantities per acre than 

 elsewhere, since the tendency of our 

 elimate and the extreme fertility of our 

 soils are to make "weed." 



Vegetables of all kinds can and are 

 I'-rown in large quantities. Besides those 

 frown in the north and west are many 

 others peculiar to the south, such as 

 okra, globe artichoke, lima beans, etc., 

 beets cabbage, lettuce, radishes, turnips, 

 mustard, cauliflower, English peas, etc., 

 are grown through the winter in open 

 ground. In fact, every home, however 

 humble, has its garden, in which most of 

 the vegetables are grown. Beside these 

 home gardens there are thousands of 

 acres devoted to truck growing and mar- 

 ket gardening. From the latter our own 

 cities and towns are supplied, wlile the 

 former utilize many thousands of cars 

 in transporting their products to the 

 western markets. 



Of fruits a great variety of superior 

 excellence can be grown here. The apple 

 is grown in the northern part of the 

 state. The pear, particularly the ("liinese 

 type, all over the state. The peaeh wil. 

 grow everywhere, V>ut it fruits best in 

 the hill lands. The native and .lapanese 

 varieties of the plums do well every- 

 where. The ai)ricot, nectrine and cher- 

 ry are not successful anywhwe in 

 this state. Grapes can be grown 

 in every parish, but succeed best in the 



uplands. Black berries, dewberries and! 

 mulberries grow wild in every parish; 

 so do the wild plums in the hill lands, 

 hirawberries are perfectly at home ev- 

 erywhere, and in some sections are large- 

 ly grown for the markets. ltaspl)erries, 

 currants and gooseberries do not thrive 

 so far south. 



O.anges, ku'iiquals, and pome! is are 

 grown throughout south Louisian;i, while 

 lemons, guavas, bananas and pineapples 

 are grown on the extreme gulf coast. 

 The loquat and pomegranate are found 

 in nearly every yard of south Louisiana. 

 Figs are cultivated in every parish, while 

 in south liOuisiana they are largely 

 grown for the canneries. 



No mention is made of our staple crops 

 — cotton, sugar cane and rice— since they 

 are inseparably connected in every man's 

 mind witli Louisiana and New Orleans. 



This bare recital will show the won- 

 derful capabilities of our soil and cli- 

 mate from an agricultural standpoint 

 Turning to the forests, we find a wealth 

 of nature's products ready for the har- 

 vest, to be turned b.v man's skill and in- 

 genuity into tlie various forms and 

 shapes suitable for man's varied wants. 

 Timber and lumber trees, stave timber, 

 box timber, hut timber, spoke tiinber,, 

 tray timber, hoop timber, ship timber, 

 bucket timber, etc., crown our hills, der. 

 orate our valleys and till our swannis. 

 Shade trees of the densest foliage and 

 of most beautiful shape everywhere 

 abound. The evergreens and deciduou-? 

 trees grow side by side in every foresi.. 

 The magnolia and the liveoak iuteriwiue 

 their boughs with the beech and the ash. 

 while the holly and the 'dogwood bask 

 in their shadows. Willows abound in our 

 swamps, ready for conversion into clvar- 

 coal or to be twisted into baskets. 



Louisiana does not appeal alone to the 

 utilitarian. Her aestlietic products are 

 perhaps more wonderful than her usefui 

 ones. Flowers of ijrilliant tints and at- 

 tractive forms fill her fields, her woods 

 and her swamps. Her climate favors the 

 growth of native flowers as well as the 

 delicate and highly-prized exotics. lioses 

 bloom in great profusion througlrout the 

 winter in open air, while japonicas, hi- 

 biscus and poinsettias of beautiful shades 

 .and brilliant tints are found in many 

 yards. Tea olives and magnolias (fras 

 cata) and cape jasmines perfume the 

 air with their delicious fragrance, wliile 

 chrysanthemums, geraniums and plum- 

 bagos give brilliancy to every garden. 



Palms of endless varieties furnish the 

 center pieces of many private yards iind 

 ornament our parks and public .squares. 



Such in brief are the proilucts of our 

 soils. For the guidance of those seekiiitj 

 a home in our midst the followiug de- 

 tails of crop/S from here are given: 



CANE CULTURE. 



Formerly every cane cniturist was also 

 a manufacturer, and upon every planta- 

 tion of sugar cane was to be found .a 

 sugar-house of suthcient capacity to work 

 up tlie crop grown. To-day the scene is 

 changing, changing rapidly. Central fac- 

 tories exist— some that d<> uot cultivate 

 cane at all, but purchase every stalk 

 crushed: others that grow only a part, 

 large or small, of the large amount con- 

 sumed. Tin- preseiK.-e of central fac- 

 tories presupposes the existence of cane 

 farmers in close proximity. Many cen- 

 tral factories already exist, and othera 



