Benoni
Apple
USDA Pomological Watercolor Collection
Benoni
Origin and History
Benoni originated in Dedham, Massachusetts, where the original tree was still standing as late as 1848. It was introduced to notice by Mr. E. M. Richards shortly before 1832. The variety is highly esteemed throughout the country and is generally listed by nurserymen throughout the middle and northern portions of the apple-growing regions of North America. Its good qualities have caused its culture to be widely extended, giving very general satisfaction; for the dessert especially, it is considered indispensable to the amateur.
Tree
Size and habit: Sources conflict on tree size. Warder (1867) describes the tree as small, upright, and close. Downing (1900) describes it as vigorous, upright, and spreading. Beach (1905) likewise calls it rather large and vigorous, with form erect to somewhat roundish, and dense. The bark is described by Downing as light reddish brown; Beach gives it as olive-green shaded with light reddish-brown, lightly coated with scarf-skin, pubescent. The tree is hardy and productive (Downing). It comes into bearing moderately young and yields fair to good crops biennially (Beach). Warder notes it as an early bearer.
Twigs moderately long, straight, slender; internodes medium. Lenticels scattering, medium, oblong, slightly raised. Buds deeply set in bark, medium size, plump, obtuse, appressed, slightly pubescent (Beach). Warder describes the shoots as slender and brown, with leaves thin and long.
Fruit
Size: Small to medium (Warder); rather below medium (Downing); medium to rather small (Beach). All sources place the fruit below average market size; Beach notes it is not large enough to be a good market variety despite its fine dessert qualities.
Form: Sources differ in emphasis. Warder describes the fruit as round, truncated, somewhat angular, and irregular. Downing gives the form as roundish oblate conical. Beach describes it as roundish inclined to conic, faintly ribbed toward the apex, with sides unequal.
Stem: Warder describes the stem as medium, green, and often stout. Downing and Beach both describe it as short and slender; Beach gives the length as short to very short.
Cavity: Acute and wavy (Warder, Beach). The cavity color is described as brown by Warder, deep and russeted by Downing, and rather narrow, moderately deep, with greenish russet by Beach.
Calyx: Warder describes the eye as large, open or closed. Downing gives the calyx as closed, with segments persistent and sometimes a little recurved. Beach describes the calyx as rather small to above medium, partly open, and slightly pubescent.
Basin: Abrupt (all three sources agree). Warder describes it as wide; Downing as quite deep and somewhat uneven; Beach as medium in width and depth, somewhat wrinkled.
Skin: Smooth. The ground color is yellow (Warder), pale yellow (Downing), or orange-yellow (Beach), covered or partly covered with red and striped with carmine or deep carmine. Warder specifies the red as mixed, striped scarlet and carmine; Downing describes the color as shaded, striped, and marbled with dark crimson; Beach as lively red striped with deep carmine. Dots minute (Warder, Beach), scattering and whitish (Beach); Downing describes them as thinly sprinkled and bright.
Stamens: Basal (Beach).
Core: Small (Warder, Downing) to small to medium (Beach), axile; cells closed; core lines meeting (Beach, consistent with Warder's description of the core meeting the eye). Carpels roundish, slightly elongated, emarginate (Beach).
Seeds: Few, dark brown, medium in size, plump, obtuse (Beach). Warder describes the seeds as angular and dark.
Flesh and flavor: Flesh yellow, fine-grained (Warder, Beach), firm, crisp, tender, juicy (Beach), with Downing also noting tenderness and juiciness. Flavor pleasant subacid (all sources); Warder adds rich and spicy. Quality rated "best" by Warder, "very good" by Downing, and "good to very good" by Beach.
Season
Sources differ slightly on ripening onset. Warder gives the season as July and August; Downing gives August; Beach states it begins to ripen early in August and the season extends into September.
Uses
Dessert, kitchen, and market (Warder), though Beach notes it is not large enough to be a good market variety despite being a fine dessert apple, very attractive in appearance and excellent in quality. Downing describes it as a valuable variety for market or table use. Warder terms it "delicious and profitable."
Book Sources
Described in 3 period pomological works
Nursery Catalog Sources
Found in 24 catalogs (1884–1921) from California, England, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Washington
- Felix Gillet , Barren Hill Nursery, Nevada City , California — 1884
- California Nursery Co. , Niles , California — 1889
- William H. Moon Co. , Morrisville, Bucks County , Pennsylvania — 1890
- Rogers Nursery Co. , Moorestown , New Jersey — 1893
- Sherwood Hall Nursery Co. , Timothy Hopkins (Menlo Park Nurseries), San Francisco / Menlo Park , California — 1893
- The Vineland Nurseries (Kelsey & Co. , Proprietors), St. Joseph, Missouri (Office: 13th and Atchison Sts., 2 Blocks East of the Citizens St. Car Line) — 1894
- Stark Bros. Nurseries & Orchards Co. , Louisiana , Missouri — 1896
- Reading Nursery , Jacob W. Manning, Proprietor, Reading , Massachusetts — 1898
- Stark Bros. Nurseries & Orchards Co. , Louisiana , Missouri — 1898
- Brown Brothers Co. , Continental Nurseries, Rochester, NY (also operated from Toronto, Canada) — 1899
- Brown Brothers Co. , Continental Nurseries, Rochester, NY (also operated from Toronto, Canada) — 1901
- Mountain Grove Nurseries (Tippin & Moore , Proprietors; Geo. T. Tippin, J. W. Tippin, J. C. Moore), Mountain Grove , Missouri — 1901
- Phoenix Nursery Company (W. E. Rossney , President; Sidney Tuttle, Vice-President), Bloomington , Illinois — 1904
- Stark Bros. Nurseries & Orchards Co. , Louisiana , Missouri — 1906
- Wm. J. Corse (successor to Robert Sinclair / Sinclair Nurseries) , Baltimore , Maryland — 1909
- Stark Bros. Nurseries & Orchards Co. , Louisiana , Missouri — 1910
- Galbraith Nursery Co. (DeWitt Hansen , Pres.-Mgr.), Fairbury , Nebraska — 1911
- Stark Bros. Nurseries & Orchards Co. , Louisiana , Missouri — 1911
- James Veitch & Sons , Ltd., Royal Exotic Nursery, Chelsea, London (also Coombe Wood, Langley, and Feltham) , England — 1911
- Stark Bros. Nurseries & Orchards Co. , Louisiana , Missouri — 1912
- Vineland Nurseries Company , Clarkston , Washington — 1912
- Union Nurseries , J.B. Weaver & Sons, Union , Oregon — 1915
- Stark Bros. Nurseries & Orchards Co. , Louisiana , Missouri — 1918
- Benedict Nursery Co. , Portland , Oregon — 1921
View original book sources (3)
— John A. Warder, American Pomology: Apples (1867)CLASS III.— ROUND APPLES.
ORDER II.— IRREGULAR.
SECTION 2.— SOUR.
SUB-SECTION 2.— STRIPED.
Benoni.
This handsome and delicious early apple is a native of Dedham, Massachusetts. Its good qualities have caused its culture to be widely extended, and it appears to give very general satisfaction; though not so early as some other kinds, for the dessert especially, it is indispensable to the amateur.
Tree small, upright, close, productive, early bearer; Shoots slender, brown, leaves thin, long.
Fruit small to medium, round, truncated, somewhat angular, irregular; Surface smooth, yellow, covered mixed red, striped scarlet and carmine; Dots minute.
Basin wide, abrupt; Eye large, open or closed.
Fig. 259.— BENONI.
Cavity acute, wavy, brown; Stem medium, green, often stout.
Core small, closed, meeting the eye; Seeds angular, dark; Flesh yellow, fine-grained, juicy; Flavor rich, subacid, spicy; Quality best; Use, dessert, kitchen and market; Season, July and August. Delicious and profitable.
— A.J. Downing, The Fruits and Fruit Trees of America (1900)Benoni
This excellent early apple is a native of Dedham, Mass. The tree is of vigorous, upright, spreading habit ; hardy and productive ; Light reddish brown. It is a valuable variety for market or table use.
Benoni.
Fruit rather below medium size. Form roundish oblate conical. Color pale yellow, shaded, striped, and marbled with dark crimson, and thinly sprinkled with bright dots. Stalk short, slender. Cavity deep russeted. Calyx closed. Segments persistent, sometimes a little recurved. Basin abrupt, quite deep, somewhat uneven. Flesh yellow, juicy, tender, pleasant, subacid. Core small. Very good. August.
— S.A. Beach, The Apples of New York, Vol. 2 (1905)BENONI.
REFERENCES. 1. N. E. Farmer, 9:46. 1830. 2. Kenrick, 1832:25. 3. Mag. Hort., 1:149, 363. 1835. 4. Manning, 1838:49. 5. Mag. Hort., 6:172. 1840. 6. Ib., 7:43. 1841. 7. Downing, 1845:70. 8. Hovey, Mag. Hort., 14:17. 1848. fig. 9. Thomas, 1849:136. 10. Cole, 1849:101. 11. Emmons, Nat. Hist. N. Y., 3:12. 1851. 12. Hovey, 1:183. 1851. col. pl. and fig. 13. Barry, 1851:279. 14. Am. Pom. Soc. Cat., 1854. 15. Elliott, 1854:122. 16. Mag. Hort., 21:63. 1855. 17. Gregg, 1857:35. 18. Hooper, 1857:17, 106, 108. 19. Horticulturist, 14:425. 1859. 20. Warder, 1867:650. fig. 21. Fitz, 1872:121, 148, 177. 22. Hogg, 1884:20. 23. Lyon, Mich. Hort. Soc. Rpt., 1890:288. 24. Bailey, An. Hort., 1892:235. 25. Woolverton, Ont. Fr. Stas. An. Rpt., 1:24. 1894. 26. Burrill and McCluer, Ill. Sta. Bul., 45:314. 1896. 27. Dickens and Greene, Kan. Sta. Bul., 106:51. 1902. 28. Budd-Hansen, 1903:47. fig.
SYNONYMS. None.
Benoni is a fine dessert apple, very attractive in appearance and excellent in quality but not large enough to be a good market variety. The tree comes into bearing moderately young and yields fair to good crops biennially. It begins to ripen early in August and its season extends into September.
Historical. Originated in Dedham, Massachusetts, where the original tree was still standing in 1848. It was introduced to notice by Mr. E. M. Richards shortly before 1832 (2). It is highly esteemed throughout the country and is generally listed by nurserymen throughout the middle and northern portions of the apple-growing regions of this continent (24).
TREE.
Tree rather large, vigorous. Form erect to somewhat roundish, dense. Twigs moderately long, straight, slender; internodes medium. Bark olive-green, shaded with light reddish-brown, lightly coated with scarf-skin, pubescent. Lenticels scattering, medium, oblong, slightly raised. Buds deeply set in bark, medium size, plump, obtuse, appressed, slightly pubescent.
FRUIT.
Fruit medium to rather small. Form roundish inclined to conic, faintly ribbed toward the apex; sides unequal. Stem short to very short, slender. Cavity acute, rather narrow, moderately deep, wavy, greenish-russet. Calyx rather small to above medium, partly open, slightly pubescent. Basin medium in width and depth, abrupt, somewhat wrinkled. Skin smooth, orange-yellow partly covered with lively red striped with deep carmine. Dots scattering, minute, whitish. Stamens basal. Core small to medium, axile; cells closed; core lines meeting. Carpels roundish, slightly elongated, emarginate. Seeds few, dark brown, medium in size, plump, obtuse. Flesh yellow, firm, crisp, fine-grained, tender, juicy, pleasant subacid, good to very good.
Season August and early September.