Tobacco
Since the soil in the coastal plains was very poor, grain, rice, and even tobacco couldn't be grown . A slave on a NC plantation started curing tobacco and it became an instant hit. "Brightleaf" tobacco was the cornerstone of North Carolina's economy. Cured tobacco was in very high demand by smokers and North Carolina soon became a tobacco powerhouse.
Other
95% of North Carolinians engaged in farming and most farms were owned by individual farmers, but there were a few large plantations. Crops cultivated were usually beans, squash, corn. Another pretty large industry was textiles which has always been pretty big in North Carolina. There were also naval and lumber stores.
Resources
Natural resources in NC included timber, fish, and land.