Trabut: Pyronia 
ie i oe 
417 
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FRUIT OF QUINCE X PEAR HYBRID 
The fruit is seedless, is almost intermediate between the 
two parents in character, and seems to promise some 
commercial value. 
It is proposed to call it Pyronia, a 
combination of the two generic names Pyrus (pear) 
and Cydonia (quince). 
This is a satisfactory trade 
name, but will not be accepted by the botanists who, 
it is suggested, may call it X Cydonia Vettchi1. 
(Fig. 12.) 
graph actual size. 
All of the fruits which I have been 
able to examine were seedless. During 
the early development of the fruit the 
two rows of ovules can be seen clearly 
in each locule, but later when the locules 
have increased considerably in length 
they are seen to be empty. 
The form of the fruit is unusual and 
characteristic, cylindrical, slightly longer 
than broad, with a short peduncle 
arising from a shallow cavity, the eye 
situated in a deep basin, open, the calyx 
lobes persistent. The skin is_ thick, 
rough, green or yellowish-green, abun- 
dantly covered with red dots like that of 
a pear. The flesh is white, granular, 
firm, juicy, sweet, slightly acidulous 
with an agreeable quince-like perfume. 
The season of ripening is October and 
November. 
It is not yet possible to state with 
confidence what place Pyronia will take 
Photo- 
in horticulture. The fruits which I 
have eaten were picked before they were 
fully ripe; the flesh was pleasantly 
flavored but firm as in a half-ripe pear. 
When cooked, the fruits seemed to be 
intermediate in character between a 
pear and a quince. 
In 1915 an attempt was made to 
pollinate flowers of Pyronia with pollen 
from various pears, but no fruits were 
obtained. I did not attempt to polli- 
nate with quince pollen, though that 
might offer a better chance of success. 
The validity of the genus Pyronia, 
proposed by Veitch, is open to discus- 
sion, because some botanists do not 
admit the validity of the genus Cydonia. 
The character of the ovules, six in 
each locule, arranged in two series of 
three, one superposed upon the other, 
seems to bring Pyronia nearer to 
Cydonia than to Pyrus. 
