Morrill's Hearts of Gold Cantaloupe

(Cucumis melo); Heritage - Centennial; a Michigan Connection variety; Minimum 20 seeds

Yes, I know, not a staple crop; however, I posit melons are a morale crop, which also plays a key role in homestead happiness! Also, Hearts of Gold was "born" in Michigan! It is important to us that we do our part to maintain varieties that reflect our home state's rich agricultural history.

Included in Lansing Seedman Henry E. Saier's Saier's Garden Book for 1920, Hearts of Gold was developed by renowned fruit horticulturist Roland Morrill, of Benton Harbor Michigan, in 1890 as an unintentional cross between Osage and Netted Gem. Stabilized by 1905, Hearts of Gold was trademarked in 1914. It remained a highly prized melon before being displaced in the early 1930s.

In addition to some musings on farming, Mr. Morrill's 1929 bulletin Morrill's Hearts of Gold Cantaloupe (pdf) extoles the virtue of this Michigan melon that "received more enthusiastic praise and endorsement than any other fruit since the introduction of the Elberta peach" - remarkably hardy with a high sugar content, notable rust resistance, and long picking window,