Ananas de Courtrai

Ananas de Courtrai

Origin/History

The origin of this variety is unknown, but it is believed to have been a chance seedling raised at Courtrai, Flanders. M. Six, who established himself in that town in the business of a gardener about the year 1784, found it already extensively grown there (Hedrick). Elliott characterizes it simply as "Foreign."

Downing records a persistent identification problem: specimens received as Ananas de Courtrai from three or four sources, both in America and in Europe, proved upon fruiting to be Ananas d'Ete. As there is said to be a distinct Ananas de Courtrai, Downing inserts Leroy's description of it rather than omitting the variety. The description attributed to Downing below thus derives from Leroy's account rather than from Downing's own observations.

Tree

Very vigorous and productive; takes readily any form (Elliott).

Fruit

Size: Large (Downing, Hedrick).

Form: Sources disagree in detail. Downing describes the fruit as pyriform and slightly obtuse, with an uneven surface. Hedrick describes it as pyramidal and often inclining to oval. Elliott gives it as turbinate, pyriform.

Stem, Cavity, Calyx, Basin, Core, Seeds: Not described in sources.

Skin: Sources are partially in agreement on ground color but differ on the sunny-side coloring. Downing gives the skin as pale yellow, with a warm brown-red cheek in the sun, more or less marbled, with some dots and patches of russet brown. Hedrick describes it as bright yellow changing to lemon-yellow, much dotted and splashed with light-colored russet — no mention of a red cheek. Elliott gives citron-yellow at maturity, beautifully colored on the sunny side, without further specification of that color. The presence of russet dots or splashing is consistent between Downing and Hedrick.

Flesh and Flavor: White, fine, juicy, sweet, and well perfumed across all sources. The character of the perfume is a point of disagreement: Downing describes it as mild, sweet, and musky with a delicate perfume; Hedrick similarly gives a flavor suggestive of cinnamon and musk; Elliott, however, specifically characterizes it as pleasantly perfumed but not musky. Elliott also describes the texture as firm, buttery, and melting — terms not used by the other sources.

Quality: Very good (Downing, Hedrick).

Season

End of August to early September. Downing gives last of August and early in September; Hedrick gives August and September; Elliott gives end of August.

Uses

Not described in sources.

Subtypes/Variants

Not described in sources.

Other

The persistent confusion of this variety with Ananas d'Ete (noted by Downing as occurring across multiple independent sources on both sides of the Atlantic) suggests the two varieties may be difficult to distinguish, or that one has frequently been distributed under the name of the other. Researchers and identifiers should be aware that material labeled Ananas de Courtrai may in fact be Ananas d'Ete.