Eastern North Carolina Encyclopedia
enormous quantities of delicious fruit with only the most indifferent attention. Owing to the fact that they do not stand shipment well, these grapes are almost unknown to northern people. Some very large vineyards of the Scuppernong variety have been developed in the State, primarily for wine purposes, but are now producing fruit for grape juice, jellies, and other products. At the horticultural branch experiment station located at Willard, N. C., extensive experiments with muscadine grapes are being conducted by the State Department of Agriculture, and the N. C. Agricultural Experiment Station in cooperation with the Office of Horticultural and Pomological Investigations, of the U. S. Department of Agriculture. The most promising varieties of the rotundifolia species from Virginia to Texas have been collected and are being tested. Breeding work is under way to develop varieties of this grape that will be valuable for shipping and market purposes. Utilization investigations have established methods of preparation for a number of products that are promising for commercial development.
FIGS
The fig is a fruit that should be more widely grown, especially in the eastern part of the State. There are fig trees in many eastern counties, growing luxuriantly and bearing good crops even under the greatest neglect. The fig is one of the finest fruits for home use grown in the South. It is delicious and wholesome when eaten fresh, and fig preserves are the standard of excellence. Fortunately, the fig is not seriously affected by insects and disease, and can be grown without the constant use of the spray pump.
Furthermore, the fig can be made one of the most profitable fruits grown in the upper South. Fig culture is really in its infancy; and very few people realize the possibilities of the industry. Even most of those who have grown this fruit for home use do not know that by selecting the proper varieties and by using proper methods figs can be shipped to the large distant markets.
PECANS
The thin-shelled pecan is rapidly coming into prominence in the Coastal Plain Section as an orchard crop. Orchards of budded trees of standard varieties are being planted every year, and now the earlier plantings are coming into bearing. Seedling groves have been top-worked to standard varieties of high quality with satisfactory results.
While here and there large seedling trees have reached tremendous size and have produced large crops, it has only been recently that the value of the thin-shelled, standard varieties of high quality and their adaptability to the Coastal Plain region has been definitely established. As a result of investigations and demonstrations extending over a period of fifteen years, the Division of Horticulture of the N. C. Department of Agriculture has definitely determined the advisability of planting certain varieties of pecans in that part of the Coastal Plain region where there is deep, fertile soil, and where the drainage is good. The Schley, Stuart, Ally and Success varieties have been found to be the most desirable for North Carolina conditions.
If the proper attention is given to the selection of location, soil, planting and subsequent care of the orchard, pecan growing offers one of the most lucrative opportunities in agriculture for the Coastal Plain Section of the State. The trees come info commercial bearing when about eight years of age and produce abundantly. There is a large local demand for the nuts at good prices.
