April is a good time for planting in Georgia—everything from the larger row crops such as cotton, corn, and peanuts to most anything that can be grown in a garden.
The last frost usually takes place by mid-April in most sections of the state except for North Georgia, which means spring planting is later in the mountain regions than in the rest of the Peach State. I still say Peach State, although we are no longer the largest producer—ranking third behind California and New Jersey.
Georgia was the first state to sell peaches commercially, and many peach farmers maintain that the best quality peaches come from within our borders. In recent years, state farmers harvested more than 7,294 acres of peaches.
We are leading producers of other crops such as pecans. With fertile soils and a favorable climate, Georgia has long ranked as the premier pecan-producing state in the country. We are a top-ranked state when it comes to blueberry production.
With peanut production, Georgia not only leads and is ranked No. 1, but we also produce 42% of all peanuts grown in the U. S. of A. For certain, we are the “Peanut” state.
Georgia is the leading producer of naval stores. Valdosta claims to be the “Naval Stores Capital of the World.” Georgia supplies 80% of the world’s demand for naval stores, pine, and turpentine.
We rank third in watermelon production and only Georgia produces Vidalia onions. Top commodities are broilers, chicken eggs, and cotton.
Having grown up on a Middle Georgia farm, I have always appreciated the sacrifice that farmers had to make to eke out a living. Nobody had any health insurance. Crop insurance? No farmers I knew could afford that. They had faith that the weather would be compatible with a good crop. Prayers on Sunday beseeched the Almighty to allow good weather to come our way.
My hard-working father did not want me and my brother to play high school football. He really didn’t see any sense in the scrimmaging process. There was no health insurance, which is standard today. If we had experienced a broken bone, it would have been tough for my family to pay the medical bills.
It didn’t matter how late we arrived home from an out-of-town road game; we were up at first light managing our farm chores and driving our John Deere tractor for some assignment in the fields.
Not long ago, I came in possession of a document from the office of Tyler Harper, Commissioner of Agriculture, who is a seventh-generation farmer himself. He hails from Ocilla, but the state is really his home. When he is not on his tractor, he has business everywhere in the state.
There are 9.9 million acres of farmland in our state. There are a total of 39,264 total farms within our borders. There are 43,322 male farmers in Georgia; believe it or not, there are 23,760 female farmers. I bet that comes as a surprise to you. This surely won’t shock you—there are 7,339 of our state’s farmers with military service.
According to the latest census, 2,700 black farmers own 323,899 acres of land across 1,743 farms in our state. That was surprising, but it is a point of pride that that many black farmers own that much farmland.
It is a sad fact that at the turn of the 20th century, many black farmers lost their land to foreclosure and wound up working as sharecroppers on land they once owned.
While we become excited about the Masters, the Braves, and spring football in April, I will always reserve affection for spring planting and take the greatest pleasure in riding through the farms and fields in Georgia and offering thanks for the handiwork of our farmers who toil in the hot sun and persevere—never giving up when threatened by hailstorms, tornadoes, and latently, hurricanes.