Black Lady Apple
Apple
Black Lady Apple
Origin / History
Listed as foreign by Elliott (1865). Described by Desportes in The Horticulturist (1856) as No. 14.
Tree
Not described in source.
Fruit
Size: Small (Elliott). One and one-third inches high, one and three-fourths inches in diameter (Desportes).
Form: Roundish; irregular (Desportes).
Stem: Short (Desportes).
Cavity: Shallow (Desportes).
Calyx: Eye small, closed (Desportes).
Basin: Eye "set in a profound cavity" (Desportes).
Skin: Deep black everywhere (Desportes); blackish red (Elliott).
Dots: Speckled with some gray dots towards the stem (Desportes).
Flesh and flavor: White, stained (Elliott). Tender, breaking, acidulous, "first rate" (Desportes).
Core and seeds: Not described in source.
Season
November to March.
Uses
"It is very curious, and very suitable as a desert fruit" (Desportes).
Subtypes / Variants
Not described in source.
Other
Not described in source.
Book Sources
Described in 2 period pomological works
Nursery Catalog Sources
Found in 3 catalogs (1900–1913) from Illinois
- Central Experimental Farm , Dominion Department of Agriculture, Agassiz, British Columbia (under test; Bulletin No. 3, Second Series) — 1900 — listed as Api Noir
- Benjamin Buckman (personal inventory) , Farmingdale , Illinois — 1901
- Benjamin Buckman (personal inventory) , Farmingdale , Illinois — 1913 — listed as Api Noir
View original book sources (2)
— B. Desportes, The Horticulturist (1856)No. 14. Black Lady Apple. — Fruit, one and one-third inches high, and one and three-fourth inches in diameter; form, roundish, irregular; stalk, short, inserted in a shallow cavity; eye, small, closed, set in a profound cavity; color, deep black everywhere, speckled with some gray dots towards the stem; flesh, tender, breaking, acidulous, first rate; ripens from November to March. It is very curious, and very suitable as a desert fruit.
— F.R. Elliott, The Western Fruit Book (1865)Black Lady Apple. Api Noir. Foreign. Small, roundish, blackish red ; flesh, white stained. November to March.