BEURRE DE JONGHE 



BRANDYWINE 



81 



very good to best ; core large, closed, with clasping 

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

 wide, long, plump, acute. 



BEURRE DE JONGHE. A prime requi- 

 site in any pear of best quality is that there 

 be no disagreeable aftertaste in the flesh. The 

 fruits of almost none of the winter pears meet 

 this requirement, but those of this variety 

 are wholly free from this astringency and are, 

 moreover, sweet, rich, and delectable. The 

 pears ripen in January and may be kept for 

 a month or six weeks at a season when there 

 are few other sweet, rich pears, the fruits of 

 nearly all other pears at this season being 

 vinous and piquant. The trees are hardy and 

 productive, but are slow in coming in bearing, 

 rather small, not at all self-assertive, and must 

 be coddled somewhat. They do better on 

 quince than on pear stocks. The variety is 

 desirable only for the amateur. M. J. de 

 Jpnghe found this pear in 1852 at Uccle, Bel- 

 gium. 



Tree medium in size and vigor, spreading, slow- 

 growing, hardy, very productive ; trunk slender, shaggy ; 

 branches reddish-brown. Leaves 2% inches long, 1% 

 inches wide, thick ; apex abruptly pointed ; margin 

 glandular, finely serrate ; petiole 1 % inches long, reddish- 

 green. Flowers 1JJ4 inches across, 7 or 8 buds in a 

 cluster. Fruit ripens December-January ; medium in 

 size, 3 inches long, 2% inches wide, obovate-obtuse- 

 pyriform, very regular ; stem short, thick, inserted 

 obliquely ; cavity very shallow or none, the flesh often 

 drawn up in a lip on one side of the stem ; calyx small, 

 open ; basin shallow ; skin thin ; color dull greenish- 

 yellow becoming yellower at maturity, thickly over- 

 spread with a pale, brownish-russet, often with traces 

 of a russet-red blush ; dots numerous, small, dull russet ; 

 flesh nearly white, fine-grained, melting, buttery, pleas- 

 antly flavored, aromatic, sweet ; quality very good. 



BEURRE SUPERFIN. Fig. 77. Superfin. 

 Tender in skin and delicate in flesh, the 



Eroduct of this variety is not for the markets, 

 ut that of few other sorts, however, so ad- 

 mirably supplies those 

 who want choicely 

 good fruits. The pears 

 are not attractive in 

 appearance, but are 

 hardly surpassed in 

 flavor in their season. 

 The flesh is notable 

 for juiciness, rich, vi- 

 nous flavor, and pleas- 

 ant perfume. The trees 

 are large, healthy, very 

 productive, and are 

 easily suited as to 

 soils. The trees do 

 not bear early, but 

 are regular in bearing 

 after this life event 

 begins. In Europe, the 

 variety is successfully 

 grown as a dwarf, and 

 the pear-growers of a 

 generation ago in America recommend this va- 

 riety as one of the good sorts to work on the 

 quince. The variety is a valuable one for 

 home orchards. Beurre Superfin was raised 

 from a bed of pear seeds made at Angers, 

 France, by M. Goubault in 1837. 



77. Beurre Superfin. 

 (XH) 



Tree large, vigorous, upright-spreading, dense-topped, 

 hardy, very productive ; trunk unusually stocky, rough- 

 ish ; branches thick, rough and shaggy, zigzag, dull 

 brownish-red, sprinkled with numerous, elongated 

 lenticels. Leaves 3% inches long, 1% inches wide, 

 stiff ; apex abruptly pointed ; margin tipped with small 

 glands, coarsely serrate ; petiole 1 % inches long. Fruit 

 matures in October ; large, 3 *4 inches long, 2 % inches 

 wide, roundish-oblate, with a short, thick, rounded neck, 

 symmetrical ; stem 1 % inches long, very thick, curved ; 

 cavity very shallow and narrow or lacking, the flesh 

 tapering into the stem or wrinkled \n a fleshy fold 

 about the base of the stem, often lipped ; calyx open ; 

 lobes separated at the base, broad ; basin narrow, obtuse, 

 gently furrowed, symmetrical ; skin very granular, ten- 

 der, smooth ; color dull yellow, netted and streaked 

 with light russet, often with a slight brownish-russet 

 cheek ; dots numerous, small, russet, conspicuous ; flesh 

 tinged with yellow, granular, melting, buttery, very juicy, 

 sweet, rich, with brisk vinous flavor, aromatic ; quality 

 very good ; core large, closed, with clasping core-lines ; 

 calyx-tube short, wide, conical ; seeds large, wide, long, 

 plump, acute. 



BLOODGOOD. Bloodgood has long been 

 a standard summer pear in America, surpassing 

 any European associates of its season, in 

 both fruit- and tree-characters. The fruits are 

 meritorious for flesh of fine texture, which is 

 melting, juicy, and has a rich, sweet, perfumed 

 flavor. The quality is variable, being very 

 good one season and poor another. The re- 

 ports of poor flavor arise from the fact that 

 the quality is always poor if the fruit is not 

 picked as soon as fully grown and ripened 

 indoors. The season in New York is August. 

 The trees are resistant to blight, healthy, 

 hardy, bear young and regularly, are long- 

 lived, and attain large size. The variety has 

 little value in commercial plantations, but is 

 prized for home use. Bloodgood seems to have 

 been brought to notice about 1835 by James 

 Bloodgood, Flushing, Long Island. 



Tree upright, dense, slow-growing, productive ; 

 branches zigzag, reddish-brown, marked with few small 

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

 leathery ; apex taper-pointed ; margin finely serrate ; 

 petiole l!/4 inches long, slender, tinged red. Flowers 

 early, 1^4 inches across, in dense clusters, 7 or 8 buds 

 in a cluster. Fruit matures in late August ; medium 

 in size, 2 inches long, 2% inches wide, roundish-pyriform 

 to acute-pyriform, symmetrical, uniform, with equal 

 sides ; stem % inch long, thick ; cavity russeted, lipped, 

 drawn up in fleshy folds about the stem ; calyx open, 

 small ; lobes separated at the base, short, broad, obtuse ; 

 basin narrow, obtuse, smooth, symmetrical ; skin thick, 

 tough, roughish ; color bright yellow, with patches and 

 nettings of russet, producing a mottled russet effect ; 

 dots many, small, russet ; flesh tinged yellow, granular, 

 melting, buttery, rich, very juicy, sweet, highly flavored, 

 aromatic ; quality very good ; core small, closed, with 

 clasping core-lines ; calyx-tube short, narrow, conical ; 

 seeds small, short, plump, acute. 



BOSC: See Beurre Bosc. 



BRANDYWINE. Fig. 78. Were it not 

 that Tyson is better in tree and fruit, Brandy- 

 wine, which ripens its crop with that of Tyson, 

 could be put down as the best pear of its 

 season. Tyson is the better variety, however, 

 and Brandywine has a place in the American 

 pear flora only because the pears have a dis- 

 tinct flavor which gives them the charm of 

 individuality. The flesh is neither sweet nor 

 perfumed as is that of most pears at this 

 season, but has the piquant smack of some of 

 the winter pears which makes the fruits par- 



