Bergamotte de Soulers

Origin/History

An old French dessert pear, the first mention of which was by Merlet in 1675, who described it as a species of winter Bergamotte of good flavor and long keeping (Hedrick). Downing also notes it as an old variety, described in 1675. Elliott describes it as foreign. Downing additionally records a separate entry titled "De Sorlus" attributed to one of Van Mons' seedlings; Thomas cross-references "Bergamotte de Soulers" to "De Sorlus." Whether these "De Sorlus" entries represent the same variety as Bergamotte de Soulers or a different pear of similar name is uncertain from the sources, but their details are included below for completeness.

Tree

• Elliott: Vigorous; branches straight, erect, compact; wood yellowish with grayish-white dots; free bearer.
• Downing (Bonne de Soulers entry): Moderately vigorous, productive.
• Downing (De Sorlus entry): Vigorous, very productive.
• Hedrick: Not described in source.
• Thomas: Not described in source.

Fruit

Size

• Elliott: Large.
• Downing (Bonne de Soulers entry): Medium.
• Downing (De Sorlus entry): Medium or above.
• Hedrick: Medium.
• Thomas (De Sorlus entry): Large.

Form

• Elliott: Turbinate.
• Downing (Bonne de Soulers entry): Oval.
• Downing (De Sorlus entry): Oblong obtuse pyriform.
• Hedrick: Long-obovate, almost oval.
• Thomas (De Sorlus entry): Ovate, pyriform.

Stem

• Elliott: One side, short, curved.
• Downing (De Sorlus entry): Rather long, generally straight, set with little or no cavity, sometimes by a ring or enlargement at base.

Cavity

• Downing (De Sorlus entry): Little or no cavity, sometimes by a ring or enlargement at base of stalk.
• Other sources: Not described in source.

Calyx

• Elliott: Small, closed.
• Downing (De Sorlus entry): Open.

Basin

• Downing (De Sorlus entry): Small, uneven.
• Other sources: Not described in source.

Skin

• Elliott: Yellowish green, gray russet, marbled most at stem.
• Downing (Bonne de Soulers entry): Pale greenish yellow, dull red in the sun.
• Downing (De Sorlus entry): Greenish yellow, slightly netted and patched with russet, and sprinkled with minute green and brown dots.
• Hedrick: Smooth, shining, pale greenish-yellow, covered with dots of fawn and faintly tinged with brick-red on the side next the sun.
• Thomas (De Sorlus entry): Light green becoming yellow.

Flesh/Flavor

• Elliott: White, melting, juicy.
• Downing (Bonne de Soulers entry): White, juicy, half melting, sweet, slightly vinous. Quality: Good.
• Downing (De Sorlus entry): Whitish, a little coarse, not juicy or melting. Quality: Good.
• Hedrick: White, tender, melting, free from granulations, juicy, saccharine, slightly acidulous, with a characteristic and pleasant flavor. In France, of first quality and considered superior to Easter Beurre; in England only second, being too tender for the climate.
• Thomas (De Sorlus entry): Juicy, melting, pleasant, deficient in flavor.

Core/Seeds

Not described in source.

Season

• Elliott: October to December.
• Downing (Bonne de Soulers entry): January to March.
• Downing (De Sorlus entry): November.
• Hedrick: January to March or April.
• Thomas (De Sorlus entry): Early Winter.

Uses

Dessert fruit (Hedrick). Noted for good flavor and long keeping (Hedrick, citing Merlet 1675).

Subtypes/Variants

Not described in source.

Other

Downing's "De Sorlus" entry attributes the variety to Van Mons' seedlings, which conflicts with the older French origin (Merlet 1675) given for Bergamotte de Soulers / Bonne de Soulers — suggesting the "De Sorlus" entries in Downing and Thomas may describe a distinct Van Mons pear that has been historically confused with Bergamotte de Soulers under similar-sounding names. Hedrick cites Duhamel's Traité des Arbres Fruitiers (2:168, Pl. XLIV, fig. 1, 1768), Hogg's Fruit Manual (504, 1884, under "Bonne de Soulers"), and Leroy's Dictionnaire de Pomologie (1:487, fig., 1867) as references.