104 NINTH REPORT. 



THE FLORA OF SOUTHWESTERN MICHIGAN. 



H. S. Pepoon. 



In dealing with our subject understandingly it will be necessary to have 

 a reasonably thorough knowledge of the physical pecnliarites of the region 

 under consideration, including the facts of topogr'aph}^, soil, water supply, 

 surface drainage, agricultural activities and more or less behind and influ- 

 encing all, the climatic phenomena. 



The district that has been thoroughly investigated during the last five 

 years embraces a portion of the counties of Berrien, Cass and Van Buren, 

 covering an area of nearly 60 square miles and occupying a strip of country 

 10 miles by 6, besides including a number of trips to outlying portions of 

 the three counties named. The latter covering more particularly the re- 

 gion between Keeler and Lake Michigan. A reference to the map will show 

 at a glance the position occupied by the explored area with reference to the 

 adjacent parts of the state. 



'The topography is determined by the fact that the whole of this part of 

 Michigan is a drift region, lying somewhat west of the terminal morraine 

 of the Michigan lobe, which skirts the present shore line of Lake Michigan 

 at a distance of 20 miles or more. The general surface is fairly level, but 

 broken in many places by the low-lying areas of former drainage, and with 

 very numerous and deep depressions of very diverse magnitude. The smaller 

 of these are commonly circular in outline, 20 or more rods across and 30 

 to 40 feet deep, often having a small marsh at the bottom. Those of larger 

 size are more irregular and contain shallow ponds fringed with thickets. 



Besides these depressions, however, there are numerous much larger ones, 

 the lower levels occupied with lakes of many acres extent or even in one or 

 two cases covering more than a square mile. These lakes are a very char- 

 acteristic feature, and seem to answer in every detail those described in 

 The Lakes of Southeastern Wisconsin as having been formed by the lodg- 

 ment of large ice-masses and their subsequent slow meeting. (See above 

 work, page — .) 



In the order of their size we find Lakes Magician, Crooked, Dewey, Round, 

 Pipestone, Cable, Keeler, Brown, Jarvis, besides a number more for the 

 names of which reference is made to the map. A very peculiar fact connected 

 with the lakes is that all except Magician and possibly the Pipestone lake 

 have sloping sandy or gravelly shores, whereas the former has no beach at 

 all, but an abrupt shore line. This lake also is the only one except Pipe- 

 stone with a natural outlet. 



The drainage is very poor, there being only two natural water courses 

 in the district, namely, Dowagiac Creek and its affluent, Silver Creek, which 

 latter drains Lake Magician, and Pipestone Creek, the outlet of the lake of 

 that name. These streams send their waters eventuality into Lake Michi- 

 gan through the St. Joe river. A number of drainage ditches have been dug 

 along the lines of lost drainage before mentioned, emptying at length into 

 the streams named. The surface of the land adjacent to these outlets is 

 very fiat and low lying, and in the case of Dowagiac Creek forming the very 

 extensive and noted Dowagiac Swamp. In the extreme northwest part 



