1985 



WISCONSIN 



WISCONSIN 



tile. Owing to the proximity of Lakes Superior and 

 Michigan, the climatic extremes are less severe than 

 might be expected in a region so remote from the 

 ocean. The skies, while clearer than in the eastern 

 states, are somewhat more cloudy than in Iowa and Min- 

 nesota. 



Damaging frosts are not common in Wisconsin ex- 

 cept in certain districts of comparatively small extent. 

 As in all of the northwestern states, summer droughts 

 are rather frequent, but are rarely so severe as to seri- 

 ously injure crops that are properly cared for. The 

 numerous lakes and streams offer excellent opportuni- 

 ties for irrigation, which has, however, received little 



2742. The roof of No. 4, Fig. 2741. 

 (See Winter Protection, pages 1981-5.) 



attention as yet. The prevailing winds are westerly, 

 hence the influence of the Great Lakes in tempering 

 the climate is less marked than in the southern penin- 

 sula of Michigan, but the climate of the eastern coun- 

 ties, and especially that of Door county, which lies be- 

 tween Green Bay and Lake Michigan, is comparatively 

 mild. 



The winters of Wisconsin are such as to preclude the 

 extensive cultivation of the tree fruits, except of the 

 hardier species and varieties, save in the eastern coun- 

 ties. But the summers are very favorable to annual 

 crops, and to fruits that are readily protected in winter. 

 The change from winter to summer is often rather 

 abrupt. This brings on an exuberant growth early in 

 the season, which while satisfactory for most crops, pro- 

 motes blight in the pome fruits. An equally precipitous 

 advent of winter sometimes causes damage to nursery 

 stock. These sudden changes, with the rather frequent 

 droughts in summer, combine to render the Wisconsin 

 climate severe for most perennial plants. When an ex- 

 ceptionally dry summer is followed by a winter of un- 

 usual severity, a disastrous thinning out of fruit trees 

 is likely to occur. The pioneer fruit planters, coming 

 mainly from New York and New England, with par- 

 donable ignorance of the severity of the Wisconsin 

 climate, planted freely of eastern varieties, most of 

 which proved too tender for the new conditions. As the 

 natural result, the first orchards were mainly short- 

 lived, and the idea gained wide credence that Wisconsin 

 would never produce the tree fruits successfully. But 

 the experience of a few persistent planters has dis- 

 proved, in a measure, this hasty conclusion. 



Wisconsin is one of the newer states in horticultural 

 development. A large part of its northern half is still 

 forest-clad. The cities are mostly small, hence the 

 local demands for horticultural products are not large. 

 But Minneapolis and St. Paul to the west, and the cities 

 bordering Lake Superior, make an export demand for 

 lruits and vegetables, for which the markets are gen- 

 erally good. 



The hardiest varieties of the apple succeed in south- 

 ern and eastern Wisconsin, when planted on sites some- 



what higher than the surrounding country, especially 

 those inclining to the north or northeast. The principal 

 orchards are located in Fond du Lac, Green Lake, Rich- 

 laud, Sauk, Door and Waupaca counties. The first 

 named county has one orchard of about 6,000 trees, 

 mostly Oldenburgh, located near Ripon, and a second 

 of about 4,000 trees of various sorts at Eureka. These 

 orchards are supposed to be the largest in the state. 



The older orchards of Wisconsiu are the outcome of 

 a long process of climatic selection. But the farmers 

 who were most anxious to grow apples continued to 

 plant trees in the hope of finding some that would 

 prove satisfactory, and these hopes have been in 

 part realized. Occasional seedling trees that grew 

 up in fence corners and elsewhere, from chance seeds, 

 or from seeds planted by pioneer farmers who felt 

 unable to purchase trees, were found to endure the 

 severer winters, while whole orchards of old varieties 

 were destroyed. Several of these have been adopted 

 into cultivation, and a few, as the Pewaukee, Wolf 

 River, McMahou, Northwestern Greening and Newell, 

 have become standard varieties of the northwest. The 

 Wealthy apple, from Minnesota, is also a standard win- 

 ter sort in Wisconsin, The orchards now being planted 

 are largely of these sorts, and the Oldenburgh. The 

 Russian apples imported by the United States Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture and the Iowa Agricultural College 

 have been quite largely planted experimentally in Wis- 

 consin, but thqs far very few if any of them have 

 proved superior in any respect to our best natives. 

 Crab apples are considerably grown for market in 

 Waupaca and Eau Claire counties. The chief hin- 

 drances to apple culture in Wisconsin, aside from win- 

 ter-killing, are the fire-blight, which destroys the tips 

 of the growing shoots in early summer, and sunscald, 

 which causes damage to the trunk in early spring or 

 during hot weather in summer. The latter is readily 

 prevented by shading the trunk. The codlin-moth is 

 destructive unless prevented by spraying or otherwise. 

 The apple scab is often serious in ton closely-planted 

 orchards. It is controlled to a degree by spraying. The 

 apples of Wisconsin are, as a rule, highly colored and 

 of large size, and the trees are very productive. 



The pear is not grown to any great extent, in Wiscon- 

 sin, owing to the liability of the trees to fire-blight and 

 winter- killing. The varieties imported from Russia 

 have not proved more resistant to these affections than 

 the hardier sorts of American origin, or from western 

 Europe. Pears are frequently grown for home use in 

 the eastern counties, and the trees are sometimes quite 

 productive and long-lived. The Flemish Beauty has 

 perhaps been more successful than any other sort. 



The quince is less hardy in Wisconsin than the pear. 

 Trees are occasionally found in gardens in the eastern 

 counties that sometimes bear fruit after exceptionally 

 mild winters. 



The Americanas are the only plums that can be de- 

 pended upon to bear fruit regularly in all parts of Wis- 

 consin. The hardier sorts of the European plum, Prunus 

 domestica, and of the Japanese plum, Prunus triflora, 

 are fairly fruitful in the eastern part, notably in Door and 

 Kewaunee counties. The trees of the last two species, 

 as of those of Prunus hortulana and Prunus angusti- 

 folia, endure the winters without harm throughout the 

 state, but the flower-buds are destroyed whenever the 

 thermometer registers much lower than 20° below zero. 

 Few plum orchards have been planted in Wisconsin, 

 and these are mainly of the European class. A plum 

 orchard of 14 acres at Sturgeon Bay is supposed to be 

 the largest in the state. 



The early Richmond and Morello cherries are fairly suc- 

 cessful in Wisconsin, in localities suitable to the apple. 

 The flower-buds of these cherries appear to be some- 

 what more hardy than those of the European and Japa- 

 nese plums. The trees are, however, subjectto sunscald, 

 and unless protected are usually short-lived. Several 

 varieties of Prunus Cerasus, introduced from Russia, 

 have been tested at various points in the state. While 

 the flower-buds of these do not appear to be hardier 

 than those of the above-named sorts, their fruit matures 

 over a longer period, which will give them value. Sweet 

 cherries [Prunus Avium) are not successful in Wiscon- 

 sin. 



