80 



BEURRE GIFFARD 



BEURRE HARDY 



being delicious and ranking among the very 

 best, but when illy suited to soil, climate or 

 care, the flesh is coarse, the flavor insipid and 

 astringent, bringing the quality down to second 

 or third rate. The pears keep and ship well. 

 The tree is hardy, uncommonly vigorous and 

 fruitful, but very subject to blight; it is char- 



75. Beurre Diel. 



acterized by its long twisting branches which 

 need to be pruned back heavily. The variety 

 is still being planted, but there are better 

 autumn pears. This pear was derived from a 

 chance seedling found in 1805 by M. Meuris, 

 Brussels, Belgium. 



Tree medium in size and vigor, spreading, open-topped, 

 slow-growing, hardy, productive ; trunk slender, smooth ; 

 branches slender, twisting, reddish-brown, with few 

 lenticels. Leaves 2% inches long, 1% inches wide, oval, 

 thick, leathery ; apex abruptly pointed ; margin finely 

 serrate ; petiole 1 % inches long. Flowers open early, 

 1% inches across, showy, in dense clusters, 7 or 8 buds 

 in a cluster. Fruit ripe in November ; large, 3 inches 

 long, 2% inches wide, uniform in size, obovate-obtuse- 

 pyriform, often irregular and usually with sides unequal ; 

 stem 1 % inches long, thick, curved ; cavity obtuse, 

 shallow, very narrow, russeted, furrowed and uneven, 

 often lipped ; calyx partly open, large ; lobes separated 

 at the base, broad, acute ; basin shallow, obtuse, fur- 

 rowed and uneven ; skin very thick and granular, some- 

 what roughened by russet markings and dots ; color dull 

 greenish-yellow changing to lemon-yellow, with a faint 

 pinkish-red blush and markings and flecks of russet ; 

 dots many, russet, very conspicuous ; flesh yellowish- 

 white, firm, becoming tender and melting, quite granu- 

 lar around the core, very juicy, sweet, aromatic, and 

 rich ; quality very good ; core large, closed, with clasping 

 core-lines ; calyx-tube short, wide, conical ; seeds large, 

 wide, long, usually plump but quite often abortive, acute. 



BEURRE GIFFARD. Giffard. This is 

 one of the few summer pears with a distinctly 

 vinous flavor, which, with the crisp but melting 

 flesh makes it a most refreshing summer fruit. 

 The pears are large, somewhat like those of 

 Beurre Clairgeau in shape and color, and ripen 

 at a time just before Clapp Favorite when 

 good pears are in demand. The fruits keep 

 well and are remarkable for their small cores. 

 The trees are quite up to the average in all 

 characters, and surpass most of their orchard 

 associates in hardiness and fruitfulness. This 



early summer pear was found as a chance 

 seedling in 1825 by Nicolas Giffard, Foussieres, 

 France. 



Tree of medium size, vigorous, very spreading, open- 

 topped, hardy, productive ; branches reddish-brown, with 

 long, narrow, large lenticels. Leaves 2% inches long, 

 1 % inches wide, stiff ; apex taper-pointed ; margin 

 almost entire, sometimes pubescent ; petiole 2 % inches 

 long, slender, reddish green ; stipules very long and 

 slender. Flowers showy, 1^4 inches across, in dense 

 clusters, average 8 buds in a cluster. Fruit ripe in late 

 August ; averages 2 % inches long, 3 inches wide, obovate- 

 acute-pyriform ; stem % inch long ; cavity lacking, the 

 flesh closing up symmetrically around the stem except 

 when drawn up in a lip ; calyx open, small ; lobes sepa- 

 rated at the base, narrow, acuminate ; basin shallow, 

 narrow, obtuse, almost smooth, symmetrical ; skin thin, 

 tender, smooth ; color dull greenish-yellow, with a 

 slightly dotted, dull pinkish-red blush, but often without 

 blush ; dots numerous, small, greenish and russet, very 

 conspicuous ; flesh tinged with yellow, granular at the 

 center, melting, very juicy, sweet, highly aromatic ; 

 quality very good ; core small, closed, with clasping 

 core-lines ; calyx-tube narrow, funnel-shape ; seeds plump, 

 acute. 



BEURRE HARDY. Fig. 76. Hardy. 

 Beurre Hardy is one of the good autumn pears. 

 The fruits are usually large, handsome, and 

 the flesh and flavor are exceptionally fine. 

 Thus, the flesh, while a little granular at the 

 core, is melting and 

 juicy in this case, as 

 truly luscious as in 

 any other pear. Un- 

 fortunately, the fruits 

 do not keep well, hav- 

 ing a tendency to 

 soften at the core. 

 When poorly grown 

 the pears are quite 

 astringent, and there 

 is always a smack of 

 astringency. The trees, 

 while not large, are 

 vigorous, hardy, pro- 

 ductive and healthy 

 except in being a lit- 

 tle susceptible to 

 blight. This is a fa- 

 vorite pear with nurs- 

 erymen to bud or 

 graft on the quince, 

 since it makes a perfect union with any of the 

 stocks in common use. Beurre Hardy does 

 especially well in eastern United States. This 

 is a French pear raised about 1820 by M. Bon- 

 net in his seed-beds at Boulogne-sur-Mer. 



Tree medium in size, vigorous, upright, dense-topped, 

 rapid-growing, hardy, productive ; branches smooth, dull 

 brown overspread with gray, with very numerous, large, 

 elongated lenticels. Leaves 2% inches long, 2 inches 

 wide, stiff ; apex abruptly pointed ; margin tipped with 

 small glands, finely serrate ; petiole 1 % inches long. 

 Flowers 1*4 inches across, well distributed, average 

 9 buds in a cluster. Fruit in season late September 

 and early October ; large, 3 inches long, 2 >4 inches, 

 wide, uniform, obtuse-pyriform, with a long neck, sym- 

 metrical ; stem % inch long, thick, curved ; cavity 

 obtuse, shallow and narrow, russeted, often uneven and 

 gently furrowed, lipped ; calyx large, open ; lobes, 

 broad, acute ; basin shallow, narrow, obtuse, gently 

 furrowed ; skin granular, tender, russet ; color dull 

 greenish-yellow, overspread with thin, brownish-russet, 

 without blush ; dots numerous, russet, small, very con- 

 spicuous ; flesh granular, melting, buttery, very juicy, 

 sweet, richly aromatic and somewhat vinous ; quality 



76. Beurre Hardy. 



