performance previously sketched: severe deterioration between
1950-70 followed by noticeable reversals during the 1970 decade.
According to Table 2, for example, the number of farms producing
cassava declined from 102 in 1950 to 13 in 1970, but increased
to 67 in 1978. Bean growers fell from 103 to one between 1950-
70, but rose to 38 in 1978. The identical story is repeated for corn
(114,10,37), sweet potatoes (270,9,72), taniers (130,5,45), and
yams (210,10,47). In all cases, acreage in the production of the
respective field crops behaved analogously to the farm variable.
Finally, production trends are less smooth but fairly supportive of
the same general picture. As a summary indicator of this escalating
interest in field crop production, with only one exception (yams),
there were absolutely more farms in 1978 growing such crops
than in 1960.


 From the data available, it does not appear that vegetable
production has undergone the same buoyant expansion charac-
teristic of field crops. Although for every type of vegetable selected,
the number of farms exactly parallels the V-shape trend of con-
tinuous declines before and increases after 1970 (see Table 3),
the respective acreages often do not conform during the 1970
decade. For example, the number of acres in carrots, cucumbers,
peppers, and tomatoes actually declined between the 1970-78
years. In addition, the increases in acreage recorded for cabbage,
eggplant, okra, and squash were quite modest, ranging from 1-5
acres and averaging less than three. As a result, the total acreage
in this selected list of vegetable crops in 1970 was 54, which was
double the planting in 1975 (26) and 50% higher than the level
reported in 1978 (36). This evidence of more vegetable farmers in


TABLE 2


PATTERNS OF FIELD CROP PRODUCTION, 1950-1978


Cassava
 No. Farms
 Acres
 Pounds
Beans
 No. Farms
 Acres
 Pounds
Corn
 No. Farms
 Acres
 Pounds

Sweet Potatoes
 No. Farms
 Acres
 Pounds

Taniers
 No. Farms
 Acres
 Pounds
Yams
 No. Farms
 Acres
 Pounds


1950


 102
 23
14,790


 103
 24
12,441


 114
 49
29,330


 270
 85
81,186


 130
 33
24,853


 210
 52
72,930


1960


 24
 3
 3,284


 12
 2
 1,192


 31
 22
 9,626


 57
 45
43,121


 33
 7
 7,165


 53
 19
21,131


InTe. CROIX, U..IRIN ISLAND



 *N, F Y BAOSTO
 PAL BECFA-MNRA


1964


 21
 4
 6,277


 8
 1
 835


 19
 11
17,266


 34
 12
16,120


 19
 3
 2,830


 24
 15
30,941


1970


 13
 4
 2,413


 1
 2
 100


 10
 8
15,012


 9
 3
 3,135


 5
 1
 465


 10
 3
 6,891


1975


 38
 5
 7,510


 29
 5
 2,281


 16
 3
 6,476


 43
 6
20,830


 26
 3
 3,835

 34
 6
30,505


1978


 67
 12
 9,710


 38
 7
 4,994


 37
 8
 5,964


 72
 14
16,326


 45
 5
 4,889


 47
 9
13,407


CONTINENTAL MOVERS, INC.

 P. O. BOX 1606, CHRISTIANSTED
 ST. CROIX, U. S. V. I., 00820
 TELEPHONE: (809) 773-2105