During the late 1800's landowners began
to recognize the potential profit of pecans in the southeastern United
States . By the late 1800's several individuals near Savannah , Georgia
had produced and marketed 
pecans
on a small scale. By 1889 there were only 97 acres of pecans planted
in Georgia .
Thousands of acres of pecan trees were
planted in Southwest Georgia between 1910 and 1925. Most of these
trees were initially planted as real estate investments rather than
for nut production. Thousands of acres were sold in five and ten acre
units, primarily in Dougherty and Mitchell Counties , which are still
today the hub of Georgia'a pecan producing counties. By 1920, Georgia
was producing 2.5 million pounds of pecans.
By the 1950's Georgia was ranked as the
top state in the nation for pecan production.
Today, Georgia pecan orchards may range
in size from just a few trees to several thousand acres. The state
continues to be regarded as the top pecan producing state in the U.S.
, with over 140,000 acres planted to pecans. An early harvest date
compared to other areas of the nation which produce pecans, often
results in good prices for Georgia pecan growers, who produced $128,499,337
in farm gate value during 2007.
