CASS COUNTY. 233 



killed by the severe winter of 1855 and 185G. In 1833 Isaac Shurte planted 

 an orchard, the trees for which came from a New York nursery. Having 

 little hope of their success he called them *' Yankee trees," but, when in 

 bearing, he was so well pleased with them that he increased the plantation. 

 The author of a History of (Jass County remarks that ''fruit growing has 

 received considerable attention from the farmers of Mason township," and 

 that it probably ranks as the first township in Cass county in this respect. 



In 1854 Justus Gage, of Dowagiac, on entering his farm for the premium 

 offered by the State Agricultural Society specifies "that he has over five hun- 

 dred apple trees, two hundred of which are in bearing, and the others are 

 from one to three years planted ; consisting, in part, of sweet fruit intended 

 for feeding to stock, and in part, of long keeping winter fruit for market. 

 He has also twenty-five pear trees, twenty cherry, thirty peach, ten plum, 

 ten quince and twenty grape. He has been much troubled with the apple 

 tree borer, the codling moth and the curculio." 



In 1868 apples were but one-third of an average crop. 



In 1869 many apples were frozen before being picked. '^ '"^ 



In 1870 the secretary of the County Agricultural Society reports that " for 

 quality of fruit the county challenges competition, while vegetables of all 

 kinds are raised in abundance, and large quantities of both fruits and vege- 

 tables are exported. In 1861 he also reports that peach orchards have never 

 recovered from the exterminating cold of a few years since. 



The first nursery in the county is said to have been planted by the Osbornes, 

 at their settlement in the town of Calvin, during the year 1835 or 1836. A 

 nursery was also commenceil and conducted by B. Hathaway, of Little 

 Prairie Eonde, as early as 1840, which is still continued. 



The brothers B. G. and E. Buell, of Volinia, planted a large commercial 

 orchard in the year 1851, a portion of which was set with Northern Spy and 

 top-grafted with Red Canada cions. A portion of the trees of some cf the 

 less hardy varieties have been seriously injured during some of the subse- 

 quent exceptionally severe winters ; still, the orchard is understood to have been 

 a profitable one, and more or less of it yet remains in a productive condition. 



B. Hathaway, of Little Prairie Ronde, has for many years given more or 

 less attention to the growing of orchard fruits for market, as well as to the 

 testing of new fruits generally. He has, also, for many years, devoted much 

 time and attention to the origination of new varieties of strawberries, resort- 

 ing, for this purpose, to our native American stock. Among his originations 

 we note Pistillate Scarlet, a seedling of his from the old Virginia Scarlet. 

 Using this as the basis of his experiments, he has, from it, originated the 

 Pomona, the Michigan, the Bidwell, and several other varieties of decided 

 merit not yet named or disseminated. His experiments have, in fact, been 

 already so long conducted in this single line that he may fairly be said to 

 have produced a race or family of strawberries possessed of distinctive race 

 characteristics which manifest themselves with a marked persistency in 

 nearly or quite all the more recent originations of this strain. 



While a batch of Mr. Hathaway's seedlings of this strain were in fruit he was 

 visited by a Mr. Bidwell, at that time a resident of South Haven, Mich., who 

 was so highly pleased with them that he purchased a single plant of each of 

 ten of them, at the price of $1 each, among which was the one since known 

 as Bidwell. These were propagated, fruited ai^d exhibited, and allowed to 

 pass as seedlings of his own origination. 



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