RUSSIAN AND OTHER FRUITS. 317 



surroundings and the direction of prevailing winds, especially in winter, that 

 the climate becomes less desirable for such purpose as we proceed westward 

 until we pass beyond the lake influence, and come within the typical climate 

 of the western plains. 



C. D. Lawton, of Lawton, Mich., who has spent much time in the upper 

 peninsula of Michigan, states that fair apples are grown there, and that there 

 are many fine rrees which sometimes bear well. There is abundance of plums, 

 when frosts do not catch the bloom in spring. Tliey are mostly wild red 

 plums, although the cultivated varieties seem equally successful where tried. 



Pears do pretty well also; at least he has seen trees loaded with excellent 

 fruit, which matured nicely. 



He never elsewhere saw Early Richmond cherry trees more heavily loaded 

 with fruit than there, wherever they have been planted. The branches needed 

 to be propped up to prevent breaking under the loads of fruic. Currants, 

 goos berries, raspberries, blackberries, and strawberries abound. 



Although this is a cold country, it has much good soil well a iapted to root 

 crops, as well as to many of the hirdy fruits, which will doubtless be success- 

 fully grown as soon as agriculture shall become a staple industry. 



At the Chippewa county fair in 1880 a fine display of apples was madp, 

 grown from trees of hardy varieties obtained from a Minnesota nursery. Iq 

 Delta county the last stat^ census reports a ten acre orchard of bearing peach 

 trees. Marinette, the half-breed granddaughter of an Indian chief, is sjiid to 

 have planted the first apple orchard in Menominee county, which is still in 

 bearing. C. D Lawton has seen, at L'Anse, Baraga county, fine apples of 

 Fameuse, and some of Russian and other hardy varieti»-s, as well as nn abun- 

 dance of other hardy fruits. Trees from the head of Lake Superior, inclul- 

 ing Oldenburg, Wealthy, Siberian crab, and others were planted in this 

 county in 1862, which are yet doing well and producing fair crops of fruit. 

 Mr. Lawton also reports hardy apples and other fruits successful in Ontonagon 

 county. The state census of 1884 reports 94 acres of apple orcharding in the 

 upper peninsula. 



Owing doubtless to the influence of the surrounding waters, the orchards 

 of the peninsula are exempt from blight, or at least so nearly so that the 

 malady attracts no attention. 



5. Since westward of the districts heretofore described there are few if any 

 local influences which essentially moiify the cliin^ite, the southern prairie 

 district will consist of northern Illinois, and the south two-thirds of Iowa, all 

 of Nebraska, and the south half of Wyoming. 



6. The intermediate prairie district will mclude the south half of Wiscon- 

 sin (westward of the Lake district), the north one-third of Iowa, the south 

 one-third of Minnesota and Dakota, wiih the north half of Wyoming. 



7. The northern prairie district incudes northern Wisconsin, (omitting the 

 Lake Superior region), the north two-thirds of Minnesota and Dakota, and 

 all of Montana. 



BLIGHT AND LA.CK OF ABILITY TO VTITHSTAND THE HOT DRY AIR OF THE 



SUMMERS OF THE AVEST AND NORTH. 



In the earlier days of apple culture in the northern United States, what is 

 now known as blight seeuis to have been unknown, or if known, to have been 

 confined to the pear. Even at the present day apple-tree blight, where 



