John Samuel Harris (August 17, 1826 – March 24, 1901) was an early American

horticulturist Horticulture is the branch of agriculture that deals with the art, science, technology, and business of plant cultivation. It includes the cultivation of fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, herbs, sprouts, mushrooms, algae, flowers, seaweeds and no ...

, the first person to successfully plant and propagate

apple An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple fruit tree, trees are agriculture, cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus ''Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, wh ...

trees in Minnesota, a climate in which it was previously thought that the fruit could not survive the harsh northern U.S. winters. Harris was born on a farm in

Seville, Ohio Seville is a village in Medina County, Ohio, United States. The population was 2,296 at the 2010 census. History Seville was platted in 1828. It was named after Seville, in Spain. A post office was established in Seville in 1830. Geography Sev ...

. His father died in 1844, and 18-year-old John was apprenticed to a cabinetmaker. At age 21 Harris enlisted in the

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

infantry, and participated in the

war with Mexico War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

.Donna Christoph Huegel, ''Stealing the Mississippi River'', Joel Lovstad Publishing, 2013, pp. 23-28. Harris' health was poor in 1848 when the war ended, so he traveled to

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

in hopes of finding a healthy climate. Still in poor health in 1851, Harris settled in

La Crosse, Wisconsin La Crosse is a city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of La Crosse County. Positioned alongside the Mississippi River, La Crosse is the largest city on Wisconsin's western border. La Crosse's population as of the 2020 census w ...

, and in 1856 moved across the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it f ...

La Crescent, Minnesota La Crescent is a city in Houston and Winona counties in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The population was 5,276 at the 2020 census. La Crescent is located in the northeast portion of Houston County; the northern edge of the city falls into Winon ...

. In La Crescent, Harris established Sunny Side Garden orchard, a 40-acre (16.2 ha) plot with apple, pear, plum, and cherry trees, along with other small fruits. Harris planted thousands of apple trees and hundreds of varieties. “A full half of which were complete and total failures,” he said. Harris was almost wiped out of the apple propagating business twice, in the winters of 1872-73 and 1884–85. Harris planted apple tree starts sent from other states and then planted the seeds of apples which those trees bore before cold Minnesota winters set in. When the trees bore apples, Harris took the hardiest and replanted. He continued this selective planting to produce apple trees that could survive the Minnesota winter climate. His technique relied on the fact that trees grown from seed live longer than grafted trees or cutting grown trees; they are more vigorous and grow slightly larger. They are also stronger and hardier, and more likely to survive frosts. Harris was a founding member of the

Minnesota State Horticultural Society The Minnesota State Horticultural Society (MSHS)'', ''with headquarters in Roseville, Minnesota, is a nonprofit membership organization that provides education and resources to northern gardeners in the United States. It publishes ''Northern Gar ...

, in 1866. He displayed an exhibit on apple propagation at the

1893 Chicago World's Fair The World's Columbian Exposition (also known as the Chicago World's Fair) was a world's fair held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1492. The centerpiece of the Fair, hel ...

. Harris died of influenza and typhoid fever "La Crosse Area Genealogical Society La Crescent (MN) Presbyterian Church Deaths, 1860-1913", written in LAGS Quarterly, No. 28, Vol. 2, May 2005
/ref> at age 74, in 1901, in La Crescent, after a long illness. He is buried in Prospect Hill Cemetery in La Crescent.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Harris, John S. 1826 births 1901 deaths American horticulturists People from La Crescent, Minnesota People from Seville, Ohio