THE TOMATO INDUSTRY IN THE ARKANSAS 
VALLEY, 
BY H. H. GRIFFIN. 
There are five factories in the valley devoted almost 
exclusively to canning the tomato. A successful pack for 
them means a considerable revenue to the farmers. The 
production of this crop has not been attended with uni¬ 
form success. To get the best results has been a perplex¬ 
ing question, both to the farmers and to the factory opera¬ 
tors. Poor success with this crop cannot be ascribed to 
diseases or insect pests, for neither caused any serious 
loss. 
One complaint has been that the vines would grow 
large but fail to set fruit in sufficient quantity. Another, 
and more prevalent one, was that the vines would be 
well filled with fruit but too late to mature before 
injurious frosts. Most of the time the result has been 
that the major portion of the growers were disappointed 
in the returns from the crop, and the factories have been 
without a sufficient supply to operate profitably. 
The writer was of the opinion that the troubles of the 
tomato growers were not entirely due to difficulties of 
soil or climate, but rather to the lack of a well de¬ 
fined system of propagation and cultivation. 
To throw some light on this subject a systematic 
study of this crop was begun and the results of three 
years work are embodied in this bulletin. 
The tomato is a native of tropical America where it 
was cultivated by the natives before the continent was 
discovered. For many years it was cultivated in this 
country and in Europe as an ornamental plant. It was 
considered poisonous, and went by the name of “Love 
Apple.” It began to be used for food in some places 
about the beginning of the last century, but as late as 
1832 it was considered a curiosity in New England. The 
value of the crop in the United States is now several mil¬ 
lions of dollars annually. Tomatoes are now put on the 
