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1962, Dayton and Allene Hubbard purchased the rural property known
as Fabius Farms. The purchase of this rich farmland included a farmhouse
located at 12147 Corey Lake Road, in Three Rivers, several buildings
and barns for storage, and 120 acres of apple orchards.
Somewhere in those first few years the name was changed from Fabius
Farms to Corey Lake Orchards, after Corey Lake, a very popular lake
in the area.
The farm has grown over the years. Two neighboring farms were purchased
as they became available, and several hundred acres were purchased
in Constantine, along US-131 and the St. Joseph River, where asparagus
was raised for several years. The operation has grown substantially,
due to the beauty of south Michigan which attracts seasonal tourists,
and loyal “locals” who appreciate being able to stop
by for a half dozen ears of corn and a tomato for the evening’s
dinner, assured that they are only hours old. Corey Lake Orchards
in Three Rivers is approximately 400 acres.
Today, the quaint modest farmhouse is surrounded by apples and
cherry orchards, and grape vineyards overlooking Kaiser Lake. Across
the drive is a retail roadside market, open with the season to sell
hydroponic tomatoes and other vegetables and flowers, and then strawberries,
cherries, summer vegetables and assorted fruits and vegetables until
the end of apple season, usually before November. Next to the farmhouse
is a large greenhouse used in the spring to coax hydroponic tomatoes,
cucumbers, peppers and flowers from seedling to delicious and beautiful
produce. On the hill south of the farmhouse is a cider mill, where
apples are pressed each fall into golden cider, and the Brandy House,
where excess crops are turned into tasty liquor.
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