THE SECRETARY'S PORTFOLIO. 403 



vines of tlio wild cucumber, grape, and Americtui Ivy or Virginia Creeper. 

 We could imagine that it was a ride up the Mississippi in miniature. 



FROM BERRIEN SPRINGS TO KALAMAZOO, PAW PAW, IONIA, MONROE 



AND MANCHESTER. 



W. n. Miller, at Berrien Springs, exhibited fine young orchards of api)le3 

 and pears. Were it in our line, we could hardly refrain from speaking of the 

 ■good farms and new ideas picked up here and there about the State among the 

 thriving farmers we met. But we had our time well occupied in taking notes 

 and observations of the many points in regard to raising fruit. 



At Paw Paw, A. Engle enters a bearing peach orchard, and C. Engle a 

 bearing peach orchard and a young peach orchard, a pear orchard, a vineyard 

 and a plum orchard. Tiiese are on very high rolling land, and doing well, 

 generally. The peaches ripen earlier than on the lake shore and find an east- 

 ern market. No yellows has yet appeared. The young trees lately set far 

 exceed the bearing trees in number. 



I give one reason for this movement. Mr. C. Engle's peach orchard for the 

 past eleven years has netted him 2,125 dollars, averaging nearly 200 dollars per 

 acre per year. In this estimate he takes out boxing, commission, expenses, 

 etc. For his labor, use of land, etc., he gets the above amount. Mr. C. 

 Engle is much discouraged with his pears. The main orchard, which took the 

 diploma a few years ago, is now nearly ruined by the blight. He is going to 

 cut it all down. His plum trees look remarkably fine and encouraging. His 

 grapes also promise a fine crop of good fruit. 



We learned that in Porter, a neighboring township in sight on high hills, 

 there have been set probably 50,000 poach trees, while on the hills at Paw Paw 

 there are only about 6,000 peach trees. 



At Kalamazoo we examined a nursery of L. G. Bragg & Co. At present we 

 will only say that things have much improved there within the last four years. 

 The nursery is in excellent condition, the stock is fine and healthy. I never 

 passed through a nursery of the same extent anywhere Avhich contained less 

 diseased stock than this one. By diseased I mean apple trees which were 

 unsound. I looked sharp, but only saw about half a dozen in 75,000 trees 

 which were old enough to put on to the market. 



Three miles from the village of Allegan, we examined the apple orchard of 

 Joseph H. Wetmore. There are some grand farms with deep rich soil on high 

 land. Trees grow well. We saw a yellow Spanish cherry tree set thirty yeai'S 

 ago. It girted fifty-three inches, was a pattern of health and had for many 

 years borne large crops of fine fruit. Since 1839 they have always had peaches. 

 From the highest point of his farm we could see twenty-two miles in one direc- 

 tion and not much less in several other directions. Its elevation and good soil 

 give it the capacity to bear sound trees. Here by the road side we saw some 

 second growth sugar-maple trees on which the limbs were blighting somewhat 

 as seen on trees of apple and pear and quince. 



At Ionia N. E. Smith enters three vineyards and a peach orchard. Fruit 

 trees and vines thrive here for the same reasons they thrive at Mr. Wetmore's 

 place, the farm is quite high and of excellent quality. 



