Fruit, below the medium size, two inches and a quarter wide, and two inches high; round and somewhat flattened. Skin, pale yellow tinged with green, and covered with thin grey russet, particularly on the side exposed to the sun. Eye, small and closed, set in a smooth, round, and shallow basin. Stalk, short, inserted in a moderately deep cavity. Flesh, white with a greenish tinge, firm, crisp, juicy, and highly flavoured.
An excellent dessert apple of first-rate quality; ripe in November, and will keep under favourable circumstances till March.
The tree is very hardy, and an excellent bearer. It succeeds best in a dry soil, and is well adapted for espalier training.
This variety is supposed to have originated at the village of Acklam, in Yorkshire.
Fruit, large, varying from two inches and a half to three inches high and about the same in breadth at the widest part; pearmain-shaped, very even, and regularly formed. Skin, pale yellow tinged with green, and covered with delicate russet on the shaded side; but deep yellow tinged with red, and delicately streaked with livelier red on the side next the sun. Eye, small and open, with acute erect segments, set in a narrow, round, and plaited basin. Stalk, varying from half an inch to an inch long, obliquely inserted in a shallow cavity, and generally with a fleshy protuberance on one side of it. Flesh, yellowish, crisp, juicy, rich, and sugary, with an agreeable and pleasantly perfumed flavor.
A dessert apple of first-rate quality; in use from December to February. It is a large and very handsome variety, and worthy of general cultivation.
The tree is a free and healthy grower, producing long slender shoots, by which, and its cucullated ovate leaves, it is easily distinguished. It is an excellent bearer even in a young state, particularly on the paradise or doucin stock, and succeeds well as an espalier.
Fruit, of the largest size, generally about three inches and a half wide, and from two and three quarters to three inches high; roundish, and angular on the sides. Skin, greenish yellow on the shaded side, and tinged with orange next the sun, covered all over with veins, or reticulations of russet. Eye, open, set in a deep and uneven basin. Stalk, short, inserted in a deep cavity. Flesh, yellowish white, crisp, juicy, sugary, and briskly flavoured.
This is one of the largest and best culinary apples. It comes into use in the beginning of November and continues till April.
The tree is a strong and vigorous grower, very hardy, and an abundant bearer.
This variety is supposed to have been raised by a person of the name of Shepherd, at Uckfield, in Sussex, and has for many years been extensively cultivated in that county, under the names of Shepherd’s Seedling, and Shepherd’s Pippin, two names by which it is there most generally known. Some years ago a Mr. Brooker, of Alfriston, near Hailsham, in Sussex, sent specimens of the fruit to the London Horticultural Society, by whom, being unknown, it was called the Alfriston, a name by which it is now generally known, except in its native county. By some it is erroneously called the Baltimore and Newtown Pippin.
Fruit, large, three inches and a quarter wide, and two inches and three quarters high; roundish, ribbed on the sides, and almost the same width at the apex as the base. Skin, yellow tinged with green, and strewed with brown dots on the shaded side; but with a tinge of brown, and numerous embedded pearly specks on the side next the sun. Eye, large and open, with broad, flat segments, set in a wide, deep, and rather angular basin. Stalk, three quarters of an inch long, inserted in a rather shallow cavity, which is slightly marked with russet. Flesh, yellowish, slightly tinged with green at the margin, tender, juicy, sugary, slightly perfumed, and pleasantly flavoured.
Unlike the majority of American Apples, this comes to great perfection in this country, and is a valuable and first-rate culinary apple. It is ripe in October and will last till Christmas.
This is the true Fall Pippin of the American orchards, and a very different variety from the Fall Pippin of this country, which is known by the names of Cobbett’s Fall Pippin, and Reinette Blanche d’Espagne.
Fruit, medium sized; oblong, regularly and handsomely shaped. Skin, yellow, covered with patches and streaks of light red, on the shaded side; and streaked with fine bright red, interspersed with markings of yellow on the side next the sun. Eye, set in a wide and deep basin. Stalk, slender, inserted in a round and deep cavity. Flesh, yellow, very tender, rich, and pleasantly flavored.
An excellent early apple, either for dessert or kitchen use. It is ripe in the end of August, and will keep till the end of September.
The tree is a healthy grower, a prolific bearer, and succeeds well on light soils.
Fruit, small; oblate. Skin, thick, smooth, and shining, yellowish green in the shade, changing to pale yellow as it attains maturity; and deep glossy red, approaching to crimson, on the side next the sun. Eye, small, set in a rather deep and plaited basin. Stalk, short, and deeply inserted. Flesh, white, crisp, tender, sweet, very juicy, and slightly perfumed.
A beautiful little dessert apple in use from October to April.
It should be eaten with the skin on, as it is there that the perfume is contained. The skin is very sensitive of shade, and any device may be formed upon it, by causing pieces of paper, in the form of the design required, to adhere on the side exposed to the sun, before it has attained its deep red color.
The tree is of a pyramidal habit of growth, healthy, and an abundant bearer. It succeeds well in almost any situation, provided the soil is rich, loamy, and not too light or dry; and may be grown with equal success either on the doucin, or crab stock. When worked on the French paradise it is well adapted for pot culture. The fruit is firmly attached to the spurs and forcibly resists the effects of high winds.
It has been asserted, that this apple was brought from Peloponessus to Rome, by Appius Claudius. Whether this be true or not, there can be no doubt it is of great antiquity, as all the oldest authors regard it as the production of an age prior to their own. Dalechamp and Harduin are of opinion that it is the Petisia of Pliny; but J. Baptista Porta considers it to be the Appiana of that author, who thus describes it, “Odor est his cotoneorum magnitudo quæ Claudianis, color rubens.”[I] From this description it is evident that two varieties are referred to, the Appiana and Claudiana. Such being the case, J. Baptista Porta says, “duo sunt apud nos mala, magnitudine, et colore paria, et preciosa, quorum unum odorem servat cotoneorum, alterum minimè. Quod odore caret, vulgo dictum Melo rosa. Id roseo colore perfusum est, mira teneritudine et sapore, minimè fugax, pomum magnitudine media, ut facile cum ceteris de principatu certet, nec indignum Claudii nomine. Hoc Claudianum dicerem.”[J] This Melo Rosa may possibly be the Pomme Rose or Gros Api; and if so, we may infer that the Api is the Appiana, and the Gros Api the Claudiana of Pliny. This, however, may be mere conjecture, but as the authority referred to, was a native of Naples, and may be supposed to know something of the traditionary associations of the Roman fruits, I have deemed it advisable to record his opinion on the subject. According to Merlet, the Api was first discovered as a wilding in the Forest of Api, in Brittany.
Although mentioned by most of the early continental writers, the Api does not appear to have been known in this country, till towards the end of the 17th century. It is first mentioned by Worlidge, who calls it “Pomme Appease, a curious apple, lately propagated; the fruit is small and pleasant, which the Madams of France carry in their pockets, by reason they yield no unpleasant scent.” Lister, in his “Journey to Paris, 1698,” speaking of this as being one of the apples served up in the dessert, says, “Also the Pome d’Apis, which is served here more for show than for use; being a small flat apple, very beautiful, and very red on one side, and pale or white on the other, and may serve the ladies at their toilets as a pattern to paint by.” De Quintinye calls it “Une Pomme des Damoiselles et de bonne compagnie.”
Under the name of Lady Apple, large quantities of the Api are annually imported to this country from the United States, where it is grown to a great extent, and produces a considerable return to the growers, as it always commands the highest price of any other fancy apple in the market. In the winter months, they may be seen encircled with various coloured tissue papers, adorning the windows of the fruiterers in Covent Garden Market.
There are other varieties mentioned by J. B. Porta as belonging to the Api family; one which ripened in August, in size like the Claudiana already mentioned, and commonly called Melo Appio Rosso, because it retained the scent of the Api; this is probably the Rother Sommer-api of Diel. There is another, of which he says, “Assererem tuto esse Melapium Plinii,” and which was held in such estimation as to give rise to the proverb—
[I] Plinii Hist. Nat. Lib. xv., cap. 14.
[J] Villæ, p. 278.
Fruit, below medium size, two inches and three quarters wide, and two inches high; oblate. Skin, pale green, changing as it ripens to pale yellow on the shaded side, and pale red, mottled with green, where exposed to the sun. Eye, small and closed, set in a shallow and plaited basin. Stalk, short, inserted in a wide, rather deep, and russety cavity. Flesh, greenish, tender, crisp, very juicy, and briskly flavored.
Suitable either for the dessert, or for culinary purposes; it is inferior to the Api and not a first-rate apple. In use from December to March. The tree has much similarity to the Api in its growth, and is a good bearer.
This is a variety of the preceding, and closely resembles it in all its parts, except that it is much larger. “La Pomme Rose resemble extremement partout son exterieur a la Pomme d’Apis, mais à mon goût elle ne la vaut pas quoy que puissent dire les curieux du Rhône, qui la veulent autant élever aussi au dessus des autres, qu’ils élevent la Poire Chat au dessus des autres Poires.”—De Quintinye.
This is a variety of the Api, from which it is distinguished by being very much flattened, and furnished with five very prominent angles on the sides, which give it the appearance of a star, hence its name. It is of a deep yellow on the shaded side, and redish orange next the sun. It is a well-flavored apple, but only of second-rate quality. It ripens about the middle or end of September.
The variety received under this name by the London Horticultural Society must have been incorrect, as in the last edition of their catalogue it is made synonymous with Api Petit.
Fruit, small, but a little larger and somewhat flatter than the Api, to which it bears a close resemblance. Skin, tender, smooth, and shining as if varnished, and almost entirely covered, where exposed to the sun, with very dark crimson, almost approaching to black, like the Pomme Violette, but becoming paler towards the shaded side, where there is generally a patch of light yellow; it is strewed with fawn-colored dots, and some markings of russet. Eye, very small, set in a pretty deep and plaited basin. Stalk, slender, about three quarters of an inch long, inserted in a rather deep, wide, and funnel-shaped cavity, which is slightly marked with russet. Flesh, pure white, firm and juicy, tinged with red under the skin, and with a pleasant, vinous, and slightly perfumed flavor.
A dessert apple, inferior to the Api, and cultivated merely for curiosity. It is in use from November to April, but is very apt to become meally.
The habit of the tree is similar to that of the Api, but it is rather a larger grower.
Fruit, medium sized, two inches and a half wide, and about two inches and a quarter high; roundish-ovate, and flattened at both ends. Skin, greenish yellow, almost entirely covered with brownish grey russet, strewed with brownish scales on the shaded side, and slightly tinged with brownish red, strewed with silvery scales on the side exposed to the sun. Eye, small and open, with broad recurved segments, and set in a rather shallow basin. Stalk, short, inserted in a deep and round cavity. Flesh, greenish yellow, firm, crisp, brisk, sugary, and richly aromatic.
A dessert apple of the first quality, in use from December to February.
The tree is very hardy and an abundant bearer.
Fruit, below medium size; round and flattened, but sometimes considerably elongated; the general character, however, is shown in the accompanying figure. Skin, light greenish yellow, covered with yellowish brown russet, and a tinge of brown next the sun. Eye, small and partially open, placed in a moderately deep basin. Stalk, short, inserted in a round and deep cavity. Flesh, yellowish, firm, crisp, juicy, sugary, rich, and highly aromatic.
A dessert apple of the very first quality, possessing all the richness of the Nonpareil, but with a more sugary juice. It comes into use in November, but is in greatest perfection from Christmas till May.
The tree is very hardy, an excellent bearer, and will succeed in situations unfavorable to the Nonpareil, to which its leaves and shoots bear such a similarity, as to justify Mr. Lindley in believing it to be a seedling from that variety.
This delightful apple was raised at Gloucester, about the beginning of last century, by Dr. Ashmead, an eminent physician of that city. The original tree existed within the last few years, in what had originally been Dr. Ashmead’s garden, but was destroyed in consequence of the ground being required for building. It stood on the spot now occupied by Clarence Street. It is difficult to ascertain the exact period when it was raised; but the late Mr. Hignell, an eminent orchardist at Tewkesbury, in Gloucestershire, informed me, that the first time he ever saw the fruit of Ashmead’s Kernel, was from a tree in the nursery of Mr. Wheeler, of Gloucester, in the year 1796, and that the tree in question had been worked from the original, and was at that time upwards of thirty years old. From this it may be inferred that the original tree had attained some celebrity by the middle of last century. The Ashmead’s Kernel has long been a favorite apple in all the gardens of West Gloucestershire, but it does not seem to have been known in other parts of the country. Like the Ribston Pippin it seems to have remained long in obscurity, before its value was generally appreciated; it is not even enumerated in the catalogue of the extensive collection which was cultivated by Miller and Sweet, of Bristol, in 1790. I find it was cultivated in the Brompton Park Nursery, in 1780, at which time it was received from Mr. Wheeler, nurseryman, of Gloucester, who was author of “The Botanist’s and Gardener’s Dictionary,” published in 1763, and grandfather of Mr. J. Cheslin Wheeler, the present proprietor of the nursery, to whom I am indebted for specimens of the fruit, and much valuable information connected with the varieties cultivated in that district.
Fruit, below medium size; pearmain-shaped, regular and handsome. Skin, thick and membranous, yellow in the shade, and marked with a few broken stripes of red; but red, streaked all over with deeper red on the side next the sun; it is dotted with grey dots, and sometimes marked with patches of grey-colored russet, which is strewed with scales of a darker color. Eye, small and closed, with long segments, set in a narrow and even basin. Stalk, very short, not protruding beyond the base, and having the appearance of a knob obliquely attached. Flesh, tender, juicy, brisk, and vinous, with a pleasant aromatic flavor.
A dessert apple, generally of only second-rate quality; but in some seasons it is of a rich flavor and of first-rate quality.
It is in use from November to Christmas.
Fruit, large, three inches wide, and two and three quarters high; roundish and irregularly ribbed, generally higher on one side of the eye than the other. Skin, smooth and shining, striped with deep golden yellow, and crimson stripes. Eye, closed, with broad flat segments, and set in a plaited, irregular, and angular basin. Stalk, about half an inch long, deeply inserted in a funnel-shaped cavity, which is lined with rough scaly russet. Flesh, yellow, tender, juicy, and pleasantly flavored.
A second-rate fruit, suitable either for the dessert or culinary purposes; in use from October to November.
This is a variety grown in the neighbourhood of Lancaster, where it is much esteemed, but in the southern districts, where the more choice varieties can be brought to perfection, it can only rank as a second-rate fruit.
Fruit, medium sized; roundish or rather oblate, with prominent ribs on the sides, which terminate in four, and sometimes five considerable ridges at the crown, very much in the character of the London Pippin. It is sometimes of an ovate shape, caused by the stalk being prominent instead of depressed, in which case the ribs on the sides, and ridges round the eye, are less apparent. Skin, deep lively green, changing as it ripens to yellowish green, on the shaded side; but covered on the side next the sun with dull red, which changes to orange where it blends with the yellow ground; the whole considerably marked with thin brown russet, and russety dots. Eye, rather large and open, with short segments, and set in an angular basin. Stalk, very short, not more than a quarter of an inch long, and inserted in a shallow cavity. Flesh, greenish white, firm, crisp, juicy, sugary, and with a particularly rich and vinous flavor, partaking somewhat of the Nonpareil and Ribston, but particularly the latter.
This is a first-rate dessert apple, in use in November, and possessing the desirable property of keeping till April or May.
This variety originated in the garden of Mr. John Harris, of Broomfield, near Chelmsford, and was first introduced to public notice in the autumn of 1848.
Fruit, large, three inches and a half wide, and about three inches high; ovato-conical. Skin, smooth, yellow on the shaded side; and on the side next the sun, deep orange, covered with stripes of bright red, which sometimes extend over the whole surface to the shaded side, and marked with large russety dots. Eye, closed, set in a deep, narrow, and plaited basin. Stalk, about an inch long, slender, and inserted in a deep cavity, from which issue ramifying patches of russet. Flesh, yellowish, crisp, juicy, and pleasantly acid, with a rich and agreeable flavor.
A culinary apple, in season from November to March. The tree is vigorous, and an abundant bearer; but like the generality of the American sorts, it does not attain the size, or flavor in this country, which it does in its native soil.
This is considered one of the finest apples in the Northern States of America, and is extensively grown in Massachussets, for the supply of the Boston Market.
Fruit, medium sized, two inches and three quarters wide, and about two inches and a half high; roundish-ovate, regularly and handsomely formed. Skin, greenish yellow, with a blush and faint streaks of red next the sun, dotted all over with minute dots, and marked with several large spots of rough russet; the base is covered with a coating of russet, strewed with silvery scales. Eye, large and open, set in a shallow and plaited basin. Stalk, half an inch long, obliquely inserted by the side of a fleshy prominence. Flesh, firm, crisp, brisk, juicy, and pleasantly acid, resembling the Winter Greening in flavor.
It is an excellent culinary apple, in use from November to February; but as it has nothing to recommend it, in preference to other varieties already in cultivation, it need only be grown in large collections.
The original tree was produced from a pip, accidentally sown in the home nursery of Messrs. Ronalds, of Brentford, and from growing on a bank by the side of a ditch, it was called the Bank Apple.
Fruit, of medium size; oval. Skin, clear pale yellow, mottled with red in the shade; but dark red next the sun, the whole covered with numerous star-like russety specks, those on the shaded side being brownish, and those next the sun yellow. Eye, small and open, with erect acuminate segments, and set in a round, even, and pretty deep basin. Stalk, about an inch long, slender, inserted in a rather shallow cavity, which is lined with russet. Flesh, yellowish white, firm, crisp, very juicy, and with a rich, vinous, and highly aromatic flavor.
One of the best dessert apples, and equally valuable for culinary purposes. It comes to perfection about the end of November, and continues in use till March.
The tree is a free grower, but does not attain the largest size. It is very hardy, an abundant bearer, and succeeds well either as a standard or an espalier.
In the third edition of the Horticultural Society’s Catalogue, this is said to be the same as Reinette Rouge. I do not think that it is the Reinette Rouge of the French, which Duhamel describes as being white, or clear yellow in the shade, having often prominent ribs round the eye, which extend down the sides, so as to render the shape angular; a character at variance with that of the Barcelona Pearmain. But I have no doubt of it being the Reinette Rousse of the same author, which is described at page 302, vol. 1, as a variety of Reinette Franche, and which he says is of an elongated shape, skin marked with a great number of russety spots, the most part of which are of a longish figure, so much so, when it is ripe, it appears as if variegated with yellow and red; a character in every way applicable to the Barcelona Pearmain.
Fruit, below medium size; in shape somewhat like a Golden Knob, ovate or conical, with prominent ribs on the sides, which terminate in five ridges round the eye. Skin, yellowish green, covered with patches of pale brown russet, thickly strewed with large russety freckles, like the Barcelona Pearmain, and tinged with orange next the sun. Eye, small, partially open, with reflexed segments, set in a narrow and angular basin. Stalk, nearly three quarters of an inch long, inserted in a narrow and round cavity. Flesh, yellowish white, tender, crisp, brittle, very juicy, and when eaten is quite a mouthful of lively, vinous juice.
A dessert apple of the highest excellence, in use from October to February.
The tree is a good and healthy grower, attains a considerable size, and is an excellent bearer.
This variety seems to be but little known, and considering its excellence rarely cultivated. I am not aware that it exists in any of the nurseries, or that it was at any period extensively propagated. The only place where I ever met with it was, in the private garden of the late Mr. Lee, of Hammersmith, whence I procured grafts from a tree in the last stage of decay.
Fruit, large, three inches and a quarter wide, and three inches high; roundish-ovate, and slightly angular. Skin, pale green, but tinged with red, and marked with a few indistinct streaks of darker red, on the side exposed to the sun. Eye, open, with long spreading segments, and placed in a moderately deep basin. Stalk, short and thick, not deeply inserted. Flesh, yellowish, firm, brisk, and sugary, and with an abundance of pleasantly acid juice.
An excellent apple, suitable either for culinary purposes, or the dessert; in use from November to March.
The tree is hardy, vigorous, a most abundant bearer, and even in seasons when other varieties fail, this is almost safe to ensure a plentiful crop. It is extensively cultivated in Norfolk, and deserves to be more generally known in other districts of the country.