Development of the Nut Industry in the Midwest
J. F. WILKINSON, Rockport, Ind.
The development of the northern nut tree industry in the midwest really began about 1910. Prior to that time W. C. Reed and son of Vincennes, Indiana had done some experimental work with the Indiana and Busseron varieties of pecan, as they had located these two parent trees. E. A. Riehl of Godfrey, Illinois had been experimenting with the walnut and chestnut, and it was at this time that T. P. Littlepage, R. L. McCoy and established our nurseries here in southern Indiana.
We then began the search for the best parent trees for propagation in the midwest.
We located Warrick, Hoosier, Major, Greenriver, Posey, Kentucky, Butterick and several other varieties most of which have since been discarded.
A number of varieties have since been introduced, by Messrs. Gerardi, Whitford, Snyder, Burkhart, Bolten, and others who are either nurserymen or propagators, of pecan, walnut, hickory and chestnut.
The Littlepage and McCoy nurseries were discontinued about thirty years ago though I have continued the search for new and better varieties, and several years ago located, named, and introduced the Giles pecan, in southeast Kansas which is proving very satisfactory. I have recently located, named, and am now introducing a new variety, CHIEF, from Illinois. This is the largest northern pecan that I have ever seen and it promises to be an outstanding variety.
In the territory from southern Indiana to eastern Kansas are countless thousands of native pecan trees in the valleys of the Ohio, Mississippi and Missouri rivers and their tributaries.
On the uplands in this same territory, the black walnut is found almost everywhere. Thousands of pecan and walnut are of suitable size for top-working and could be made valuable by being grafted over to these fine varieties. These may be found in any quantity from a single tree to a native grove (especially pecan) of thousands of trees.
One of the largest pecan groves is in Gallatin county, Illinois along the Wabash river where it has been estimated there are as many as twenty thousand pecan trees of bearing size in one locality.