The news in this publi
cation is released for the
press on receipt.
THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA
NEWS LETTER
Published Weekly by the
University of North Caro
lina for the University Ex
tension Division.
JUNE 13, 1928
CHAPEL HILL, N. C.
THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA PRESS
VOL. XIV, No. 31
Editorial Boa
•i« E. C. Branson. S. H. Hobbs. Jr.. P. W. Wager. L. R. Wlison. E. W. Knight, D. D. Carroll. H. W. Odum.
Entered as aecond-class matter November 14. 1914. at the Postoffice at Chapel Hill. N. C.. under the act of August 24. 1918.
DIVEESIFICATION IN N. C.
fruits and vegetables
That there is increased diversification
CURB MARKETS !
The changing conditions have made it
of agriculture in the state is indicated ; necessary that farmers have a larger
by tte fact that at least fittv-three j quantity of cash now than formerly. It
of the counties made car-lot shipments ! « now apparently necessary to purctase
of fruit or vegetables last year. Alto-
gether more than eighteen thousand
car loads of such produce were shipped
from these counties. Thi^ does not in
clude the vast quantities which were
sent out by motor truck. In fact good
roads and motor trucks have brought a
market for surphis foodstuffs to those
farms which produce surpluses in such
small quantities and are so far removed
from the railroad that they are not
reached in any other way.
The table which appears elsewhere in
this issue indicates the fifty-three coun
ties which are producing fruit and truck
on a commercial scale. It is interestirg
to note which is the leading county for
each of several products. Moore leads
in peaches and in dewberries, Surry in
apples, Duplin in strawberries, and
Richmond in grapes. In the case of
vegetable.°, Pasquotank leads in while
potatoe'S, peas and spinach, Carteret in
sweet potatoes and cabbage, Pender in
string-beans, New Ilanover in carrots
and lettuce, Beaufort in celery, Duplin
in cucumbers, Sampson in peppers,
Columbus in turnips, Scotland in water
melons and cantaloupes, Buncombe in
tomatoes.
With 1,126 car-loads of strawberries
and 1,176 car-loads of vegetables Duplin
•wins the laurels as the foremost county
in fruit and vegetable production, at
least this is the case if we use car-lot
shipments as a measure of comparison
Away from Cotton
It is encouraging to find so many
counties producing fruit and truck on a
commercial scale. It is an evidence
that North Carolina agriculture is be
coming diversified and that an increas
ing number of North Carolina farmers
are breaking away from sole depen
dence on cotton and tobacco. It is an
evidence, too, that each locality is dis
covering and capitalizing its own
peculiar endowments. The cultivation
of peaches, strawberries, dewberries,
lettuce, cucumbers, etc., has generally
proved profitable, and there is more
prospect of success in.attempting other
specialties than in expanding too far
those already established.
North Carolina is still importing too
much of its food and feedstuffs, how-
■ever. The home market has not been
developed as fully as it might be. It
may not be consistent with the law of
comparative advantage for North Caro
lina to produce every kind of product
■of which it is capable. It may not be
economically sound, for instance, to at
tempt to supply- all the butter and
cheese which is consumed; though it
'does seem a mistake for a farmer not
to produce enough milk and butter for
bis own family. It may be economi
cally: sound to import beef but it is
doubtful if it is to import poultry and
eggs. Nor does it seem logical to be
shipping peas, beans, tomatoes and
sweet corn out of the state to be manu
factured and tben buying it back in
cans.
Local Markets Needed
The successful cultivation of perish
able fruits and vegetables depends on
successful marketing. That means
that the grower cannot be entirely de
pendent on distant markets which buy
only in car lots. Farmers will diver
sify when they are assured of a local
market for surplus foodstuffs. They
cannot afford to diversify before. It is
therefore necessary to develop a
home market as well as a foreign mar
ket. North Carolina has nearly three
million people and they should be sup
plied with home-grown fruits and
vegetables. This means curb markets,
contracts with chain stores, peddlers
routes, and in general a systematic dis
tribution scheme. To establish such a
system requires standardization of
product, regularity of service, adver
tising, and fullest cooperation between
producers, distributers and consumers.
It will also require cooperative storage
and transportation facilities, and can
neries to absorb seasonal surpluses.
Properly organized North Carolina
could feed itself and so far as most
products are concerned it would be
'■economically sound to d© so.
from outside sources a greater number,
of commodities in larger quantities
than in the past. Such conditions have
forced the farmer and farm woman to,
think more of the marketing side of
farming. In recent years one of the
great weaknesses of organization has
been the inability of the farmer to sell
to advantage what he has produced.
Fortunately the problems of marketing
are being solved, though much more
slowly than those interested desire.
In certain sections curb and roadside 1
LITTLE HOMES
0 little homes, je little homes of
love!
Strength of a man; a woman’s song;
laugh of a child;
Warmth of a fire; glow of a lamp;—
though wild
The wind without, and grim the sky
above.
0 little homes set close on every
hand!
Ye narrow, .walled-in worlds of joys
and fears,
Built of the commonplace of smiles
and tear?.
Ye are the heart and sinew of our
land!—F. Means.
Some have gone as far as Philadelphia j “Springdale, Ark., shipped 112 car-
and New York. Each truck has two! loads from the 9,COO acres of grapes
drivers, and the actual running time is j they had planted there last year,”
21 hours to Philadelphia and 26 hours
to New York. '
The practice of hauling strawberries
north in trucks began several seasons
ago but the service was extended to
said Mr. Bly in further discussing the
grape-growing industry for Henderson
county. “1C has not been long since a
man sat in my office here and told me
that this country looks, just like that
They got their
the satisfaction of both the farmer and
the consumer. Abnormal as it may
seem at first thought the merchants
prosper more when farmers develop
markets are being well developed Pan-American Standardization Con
ference at Washington, we. learn from
an agricultural bulletin.
“Standardization,” according to Mr.
, ., , 4. f-u Tenny, “is the definite foundation on
good curb and roadside markets than ^
^ ^ , , , i which rests most of the individual
when they do not. When good markets i. .. u- u i tu i, i
wiicu Lucji uu e. I functions which make up the whcle
are developed the farmers have more l niarketing. It is essential
money to spend and they spend it with , maintenance .
the merchants. Better markets, there-
concerned. It
of the bureau’s
nationwide market news service; it is
' basic to the use of credit: it is the one
safe basis for advertisiLg.
! “Standardization facilitates the set-
I tling of disputes as between shippers
and dealers; it is the only^ safe basis
fore, benefit every one
is but natural that the prosperity of:
a community is dependent upon the
prosperity of each class in the com
munity.
Last April the fifth anniversary ' which equitable inspection service
the home demonstration curb market |
was celebrated at Rocky Mount, North i especially useful in co-.
Carolina. This curb market marketing by affording a
an outstanding one. Sales are hel pooling the products of vari-
the farm women two hours each batur-; it is a prime requisite in
day morning throughout the year an [ g^jjjjj^jgtering the United States ware-
each Wednesday morning during ’ 1 j^ouse act. ”
summer months. The total sales forj o j j- ,•
the four years reached ?100,000 and; In other words standardi.aUon add
for last year, $31,016.77. This market | ‘be farmer s p U.
was only one of twenty-seven i„ 1 farmers have not learned the lesson o
North Carolina. The total sales „ r standardization Many a grower it
all the markets last year amounted to : ^rtrikes us, produces tobacco of a fine
an LUC mtx , , u 1 ' aualilv but fails to grade it properly.
S280 496 04 excluding sales by parcels ; j
'4.0.0 , fe Knowledge of standardization rules and
post and express. I energy to apply them will go a long
These curb markets have not only •: toward making Eastern Carolina
made-the communities more prosperous i more prosperous.—Kinston
as well as the farmers but the people
have learned to know each other better.
— Southern Planter.
i North Carolina only last year. The ^ Springdale. They got
j movement probably began in the New i start from the planting of a single vine.
I Jersey strawberry belt and was later | ^ have three times as many
[extended to the Eastern Shore of Vir-1 vines planted in the county in the next
' ginia. However, the seasons are later ■ years as we have today, but I fe^
: in New Jersey and Virginia and so the I have made a fine beginning, and
I trucks are being employed in transport- have started on a money-making crep
ling berries from eastern North Caro- for P^oP'e here. "-Asheville Citizen,
jlina. Although it is h'ghly probable
that improved train service may be
secured, yet it is entirely likely that
the movement by truck will also con
tinue, due to the excellent roads in
North Carolina and the fact that Vir
ginia, to the north, is improving
its roads. Undoubtedly, an object
lesson has been given and the re
sult will be far-reaching, meaning the
saving of thousands of dollars to our
strawberry growers.—Adapted
Agricultural Review.
from
Free Press.
LIVESTOCK VS. COTTON
Manley Fescue is leading the way to
N. C. RANKS HIGH
North Carolina ranks third among 17
Southern states in the gross value of
all products, fourth in the value of
a new era for the agricultural popula-; ggj.jgu!tural products, third in the
tion of sparsely settled southeastern i manufactured products and
Carolina. Foscue is a Jones county | population, according to fig-
farmer who does not grow a stalk of j published by the Manufacturers
tobacco or cotton. Only forage crops i 1928 Blue Book of South-
are produced for livestock rang-
A BEGINNING IN GRAPES
Inaugurating what is expected ulti
mately to be fostered on a large scale
here, the grape-growing industry, 4,COO
grape vines, mostly of the varieties of
Green Mountain and Catawba, have
been planted in Henderson county this
year, C. H. T. Bly announced to-day.
“This is just the beginning of a great
industry,” said Mr. Bly. “That many
vines doesn’t signify that we will have
a big grape-juice factory at once, but
it does mean that we have gotten
start on the grape-growing industry.
The grapes that were planted here
came from Fredonia, N. Y., from what
Mr. Bly characterizes as the finest
vineyard nursery in the world. The
movement has been consummated as
the result of an idea he has had in
mind for a number of years, and on
which he has put forth considerable
energy.
N. C. CLUB YEAR-BOOK
The North Carolina Club Year-Book
for 1926-27 is eff the press and a limited
supply is available for free distribution.
Interested people within the state may
obtain a copy by requesting the same
from the University Extension Division
or from the Department of Rural
Social-Economics. To people outside
the state the price is fifty cents.
Last year the club studies were con
cerned with the civic life of the state
and the year-book is entitled Some
Problems in Democracy in North Caro
lina.
The titles and authors of the several
chapters are as follows:
Some Essentials of Good Citizenship,
by E. C. Branson
Modernizing Education for Ci/izen-
ship, by-Paul W.Terry
Training foy Public Service, by
Robinson Newcomb .
The Women’s Program for North
Carolina, by Mary 0, Cowper
The Short Ballot, by Alvin S. Kartus
Elections and Election Practices, by
Paul W. Wager
County Government, by Ralph W.
Noe
Distribution of the Tax Burden in
North Carolina, by Coralie Parker
The Trend Toward Lawlessness, by
Judson F. Ashby
Democracy and a Free Press, by Jo
sephus Daniels.
Ing over the 4C0 acres he formerly
called a plantation, but which has be
come a ranch now.
Foscue’s place was formerly a part
of the famous Eavenswood plantation.
He was reared to the Jones county
style of farming. He' became inter
ested in stock. According to an ac
count of his venture, 1,000 bogs and
hundreds of sheep and cattle are being
grazed on the 400 acres, and corn for
winter feed is produced in fields fenced
off from the stock runs.
The farm has been divided into
ern Progress.
The Blue Book shows in addition
to the above facts a splendid year of
progress in the two Carolinas and all
the Southern states.
In gross value of products, this state
comes out with a sum of $1,616,032,000,
which is exceeded only by Texas with
$2,724,293,000, and Missouri with gross
value of products amounting to $2,414,-
849,000.
Missouri takes the lead in the value
of manufactured products with $1,617,-
161,000 against $1,227,962,000 for Texas
and $1,060,434,000 for North Carolina,
number of pastures and fields, sepa-, agricultural products
rated by fences. At night the animals [ g uig lead with $1,066,764,-
find their way into a central lot in Missouri takes
which barns have been erected for
them. Aside from the labor of his own
family, Foscue paid less than $300 for
help during the first six months of
1927.
The stockman started hog and cat
tle farming only three or four years
ago. The business on such a scale was
new to the territory. In spite of a few
obstacles Foscue has prospered. He
is “in the clear” now and believes the
business will be much more profitable
than the raising of tobacco and cotton
in future. Thousands of idle acres in
Onslow, Jones, Pender and other coun
ties of the section might be turned into
grazing lands at small cost, according
to persons interested in Foscue’s ven
ture. His is said to be the first large-
scale stock farm in the district.—
Greensboro Daily News.
STANDARDIZING PRODUCTS
Standardization of farm products as a
fundamental factor in
keting was stressed by Lloyd S. Tenny,
chief of the Bureau of Agriculture _
economics of the United States De- ro hours
partment of Agriculture, in addressing
second place with $717,634,000 and
Oklahoma third with $466,779,000 and
North Carolina comes fourth with
$463,606,000. ’
In an estimate of the population of
North Carolina cities Winston-Salem is
given a population of 81,000 as the
largest city in the state and Charlotte’s
population is estimated at 80,600 as
second in size.
North Carolina’s population is given
as 2,897,000 which is exceeded only by
three other Southern states.-Marion
Progress.
marketing strawberries
A striking example of the benefits
to be derived by the farmer from good
roads is afforded in the strawberry belt
of eastern North Carolina, from which
thousands of crates have been moved
by truck each season.
Last year there were as high as 2,000
to 3,000 crates of berries hauled from
Wallace and Rose Hill in one day. Some
of the trucks made three trips north
each week, with a running time of 8 to
going into Richmond, Wash-
Baltimore, and other cities.
FRUITS AND VEGETABLES IN NORTH CAROLINA
Counties MaKing Car-Lot Shipments in 1927
The following table, showing the number of car-lot shipments of fruits and
vegetables from each of the fifty-three counties making such shipments, is an
adaptatation of a more comprehensive table which appeared in the March issue
of the North Carolina Farm Forecaster.
Fruits of which car-lot shipments were made include 80 cars of apples, one
of grapes, 1,692 of peaches, 2,118 of strawberries, and 389 of dewberries.
Vegetables include 346 cars of string-beans, 291 of cabbage, 606 of cantaloupes,
11 of carrots, 2 of celery, 911 of cucumbers, 423 of lettuce, 671 of peas,- 39 of
peppers, 1,697 of sweet potatoes, 7,678 of white potatoes, 4 of turnips, 22
of spinach, 49 of tomatoes, 1,126 of watermelons, and 226 of mixed vegetables.
Duplin county excels all others in the production of fruits and vegetables.
Its car-lot shipments in 1927 included 1,126 of strawberries, 526 of white
potatoes, 380 of cucumbers, 160 of watermelons, 37 of cantaloupes, 84 of string-
beans, 22 of peas, 8 of peppers, one of sweet potatoes, and nine of mixed
vegetables.
Department of Rural Social-Economics, University of North Carolina
ingtoD,
Car-lot shipments of
Rank County Fruits Vegetables
1 Duplin 1,126. 1,176
2 Pasquotank 0 2,177
3 Beaufort 0 1,416
4 Moore 1,236 18
6 Pamlico 0 1,181
6 Columbus 0 1,010
7 Carteret 0 918
8 Scotland 19 823
9 Wayne 6 816
10 New Hanover ... 0 716
11 Tyrrell 0 680
12 Camden 0 666
13 Currituck 0 426
14 Pender 0 396
16 Robeson H 347
16 Montgomery 364....T. 0
17 Washington 0 306
18 Richmond 209 25
19 Craven 0 231
20 Pitt 0 229
21 Surry 69 84
22 Cumberland 21 109
23 Chowan 0 117
24 Sampson 1 96
26 Warren 26 66
26 Martin 0 79
27 Halifax 0 76
28 Haywood 14 68
29 Hoke 0 64
Car-lot shipments of
Rank County Fruits Vegetables
30 Edgecombe 0 61
31 Lenoir 0 38
32 Buncombe 2 33
33 Anson 0 34
34 Lee .' 30 0
34 Wake 30...... 0
36 Bladen 0 27
37 Perquimans 0 26
38 Harnett 9 10
39 Brunswick 0 18
40 Henderson 0 12
41 Onslow 0 9
42 Gates 0 8
43 Bertie 0 7
44 Johnston 0 6
44 Mitchell 6 0
46 Rutherford 0 4
47 Wilson 0 3
47 Catawba 0 3
49 Alexander 0 2
49 McDowell 0 2
49 Polk 2 ‘ 0
62 Wilkes 1 0
62 Yancey 0 1
Boat shipments.. 0 282
Pick-up cars 95 0
County and sta
tion unknown.. 0 59
Total 3,891 14,290