The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1901-08-16
AN IRRIGATED FRUIT FARM.
Minnesota Has One That is Bting Made
Great Success.

day Minneapolis journal gives an In
teresting description of Minnesota
fruit farm, which is located on Can
N on Lake, on the Chicago Great West
ern road, and which is being made
great success. We reproduce below
her account of it;
If "Elmwood'' the R. 81. L. Jewet
farm on Cannon Lake is fair sample
it is we'll within the possibilities tina
Minnesota may be known in the neal
future as one of the best small frui
states in the Union. At present thi
is called ''the bread and butter state
but Minnesota is also able to furnish
jam to go with the bread and butter
Elmwood is probably the larges
| irrigated fruit farm in Minnesota, in
deed it is one of the very few irrigated
farms in the state and is a rather I'M
ique experiment in this way. 1t il
owned and managed by R. 81. L.
Jewett and his sons of st. Paul who
come out to this farm only during the
, summer season.
Here, on about twenty-five acres OF
land, is being conducted one of the
most successful fruit ranches within
| the confines of Minnesota. There are
plantations of raspberries, black, red
and yellow, strawberries both red and
yellow, gooseberries currants black,
red and white, pears, apples, plums,
etc. And while the straw berries from
California are larger, the Minnesota
berries are better and finer favored.
One of the distinctive features of the
products of this farm and one of the
most gratifying to its owners is that
all the berries, Strawberries and rasp-
berries shipped from Elmwood bring a
a little higher price in the market than
those from any other farm. They are
all picked over and selected before
shipment. This adds a trifie to the
wages of the pickers but it is more
than returned in the added reputation
of the fruit.
Beside the usual variety of berries
there are number of very uncommon
fruits and varieties of fruits at Elm
wood. Among others there are the
white or yellow raspberries which
mixed with the red raspberries make
a very pretty dish. These raspberries
which are called the Golden Queen, !"
are soft. pale yellow, and many
than the red.
There are twelve acres of raspber-
ries, the red ones being the varieties
known as the Loudon, the Turner and
the Cuthbert, but as the latter are not
very prolific it is Mr.. Jewett's inten-
ton to root them out and retain only
the Loudon. Then there are the black
caps, the Older which lasts particu-
larry we'll and the Nemeha with white
a pretty berry, but not
quite SO lasting in quality as the Older.
The white straw berries are French
variety, named the Louis Gaultier and
are amber colored with an occasional
pink streaking. Every member of the
family tries experiments here, and
there are constant tentative efforts to
produce something new or to origin
ate some new variety. A Seeding
stra W berry has been originated on the
farm called the sc F. Jewett," after
a member of the family, and last year
a premium was obtained on this var
iety at the state horticultural summer
meeting.
1t was R. H. Jewett, who suggested
the plan of exhibiting berries at these
on plates, and as the fruit
could be better seen, a more fair and
equable judgment can he rendered.
After he exhibited his fruit this way
the judges were so pleased with the
idea that they have adopted this
method altogether.
The variety originated here, the &c.
F. Jewett, " though not very deep in
color, is very hardy, begins to bear
earlier, and bears longer than almost
any other veriety. Frequently while
one plant is bearing ripe fruit another
is in bloom.
There is also an orchard connected
with Elmwood where "Wealthy';
and Peerless apples are grown
Among the curiosities of the orchard
is a tree bearing apples on one side
and pears on the other. There are d
number of the new Compass cherries, a
new and strange fruit obtained by
crossing the Colorado sand cherry with
a plum, thereby producing an entirely
new fruit in manner somewhat SINH
lar to that in which the nectaripe and
the apricot were produced by crossing
the peach and the plum. What the
result will be is still to be seen.
The Loudon raspberries, which next
year will be the only red variety grown
here, as said to be wonderful pro-
ducers Loudon himself asserted that
he had raised 200 bushels of berries
from one acre and sold them at fifteen
cents a quart, making truly remark
able profit.
The plantation of Wallace raspberries
is very interesting, as this variety
from the tips of the canes.
the branches growing long and slender
until they bend over and touch the
ground where they take root.
Of the currants there are two varie
ties of the red sort, the Pomona and
the Wilder, both so large as to suggest
small red cherries. Walnut, hickory
and Eastwood and willows flourish
here, planted between the different
plantations and serving the triple pur-
pose of windbreak, adornment and pro-
fit. The history of the willow planta-
ton is rather unusual as originally
they were some withes binding some
apples Mr.. Jewett purchased. He
struck the slender wands in the ground
and today there are rows upon rows
of them.
The irrigation system in use on this
noteworthy farm is worked by wind
mill and four horse power gasoline
engine which pumps water into re-
servoir few yards away. The wind
mill brings water from a we'll dug at
the margin of Cannon lake, for the
farm lies in the Cannon valley, and
with either the windmill or the pump
ing apparatus worked by the engine
the reservoir. which ia 16Ox6O feet in