Heritage Apple Corps
← All varieties

Blue Pearmain

Apple
USDA watercolor illustration of Blue Pearmain

USDA Pomological Watercolor Collection

Blue Pearmain

[NOTE: Source text may be incorrect — the opening fragment of the Hedrick (1922) source, which runs from "known in New England as early as the Revolutionary War" to "October to January or February," precedes the numbered Blue Pearmain heading. Its description contradicts Hedrick's own Blue Pearmain entry: oblong-conic form, stem long, calyx closed, color deepening to almost black, seeds often abortive, flesh "juicy becoming dry," "prevailing effect dull gray-purple." It appears to be the tail of a different variety's entry and is left out of the merge. Its claims are: known in New England by the Revolutionary War; culture spread southward to the Carolinas and westward to the Mississippi; tree large, vigorous, upright-spreading; leaves long; season October to January or February.]

Origin / History

Blue Pearmain is an old variety of uncertain origin, supposed to be American (Beach, after Lyon). Bunyard gives "Origin, American, date uncertain, known before 1800." Kenrick first described it in 1833 (Hedrick), and mentions it as common in the vicinity of Boston in the early part of the 19th century (Beach). Beach thinks it has probably been in cultivation for a century or more, and Hedrick says it is known to be at least a hundred years old.

On account of its hardiness it has often been planted in the home orchards of the more elevated regions of New York and New England during the last 75 years (Beach). In Beach's day occasional trees were found in the oldest home orchards of New York. It was rarely planted, and he did not recommend it for commercial planting. Hedrick calls it widely grown only in New England.

Hedrick characterizes Blue Pearmain by its bluish bloom, deep purplish color, ribbed or sometimes furrowed surface, thick skin, the mild pleasant flavor of its fruits, and the hardiness of the trees. He writes that it "seems to have transmitted" all of these characters "little changed to a numerous progeny." In his judgment the quality is not sufficiently high to make the variety worthy except where hardiness is necessary.

Bunyard calls it "a hardy variety worthy of further trial" and says it does well in Western Counties. George Bunyard & Co. (1901) record an A.M., R.H.S., and Veitch (1911) an F.C.C. It was planted for trial at the Central Experimental Farm, Agassiz, British Columbia, in spring 1890.

Tree

Tree hardy, becoming moderately large to large. Beach calls it moderately vigorous, or on rich soil sometimes vigorous, and spreading. Downing says it grows strongly, and the Agassiz station calls it a vigorous grower. Bunyard gives growth moderate, rather spreading. In the nursery it is a slow, stiff grower (Beach, after Phoenix). Elliott thinks it unsuited to exposed situations, the fruit being large and heavy and easily blown off.

Shoots stout, dark (Elliott). Twigs below medium, rather stout, nearly straight, rather blunt at tips, with large terminal buds; internodes medium to long. Bark very dark, a dull brownish red; scarf-skin thin to rather heavy; quite pubescent. Lenticels inconspicuous, scattering, below medium, roundish, raised. Buds large (Elliott); above medium, moderately projecting, roundish, slightly pubescent, free (Beach).

Leaves broad, coarsely serrated (Beach). Bunyard gives them rather large, grayish green, upfolded, and finely serrate.

Productiveness is reported from thin to heavy. Downing gives moderate crops and Thomas calls it "a thin bearer." Bunyard calls it fertile and Veitch "a heavy cropper." Beach says that in some localities it bears well but more often it is not a reliable cropper. He adds that it is apt to have a pretty high percentage of unmarketable fruit.

Fruit

Size: Medium to very large, most accounts giving large to very large. Downing gives "of the largest size," and Veitch calls it "one of the largest of the Pearmain type." Beach gives above medium to very large, pretty uniform in size and shape. Bunyard alone gives medium, 2⅔ by 2½.

Form: Roundish, slightly conical, the cone obtuse (Thomas). Beach gives roundish or inclined to oblate, sometimes a little inclined to conic. Thomas finds it inclining to oblong, and Budd and Hansen give roundish to roundish oblong. Downing, Budd and Hansen, and Bunyard call it regular or nearly regular. Beach calls it irregular, often obscurely ribbed, sometimes distinctly furrowed from the cavity nearly to the basin.

Stem: Short to medium length, rather thick. Most accounts call it short or rather short, and Beach gives medium length to rather short. Thomas measures it at three-fourths of an inch long.

Cavity: Moderately deep to deep, rather wide to wide, obtuse, obscurely furrowed. Usually covered with orange-russet or greenish russet (Beach); some stellate russet (Budd and Hansen).

Calyx: Small (Elliott), deep set (Thomas), slightly or partly open to open. Lobes acute (Beach); segments flat, convergent (Budd and Hansen). Calyx tube elongated conical, approaching funnel-form, or funnel-shaped. Stamens basal to median.

Basin: Shallow to deep, medium to moderately wide. Most accounts make it medium to deep. Budd and Hansen alone call it shallow, smooth, some with a trace of russet. Obscurely furrowed, with concentric gray or russet lines (Beach).

Skin: Thick, a little rough. Ground yellow or pale yellow; a dull ground (Elliott, Downing) or lighter ground (Thomas); green at Agassiz. Washed and mottled with red, often deepening on one side, the sunny side, to nearly solid red. Splashed, striped, and blotched in large broken stripes with dark purplish red or deep purplish carmine. Budd and Hansen find it almost wholly covered with the large dark purplish splashes and stripes, and the Agassiz station nearly covered with purple. Bunyard gives yellow entirely covered with dull crimson flush and broad broken stripes.

Overspread with an abundant, conspicuous, heavy white or bluish bloom, heavy on the tree (Bunyard). Over the dark red the bloom gives the fruit a bluish color, from which the variety takes its name. The catalogs call it "of peculiar colour," and George Bunyard & Co. call it handsome. Beach calls it beautiful when well colored, "though not brilliant," being overcast with a dull bluish bloom.

Dots: Numerous, small, pale (Beach), white, some minute and russet (Budd and Hansen). Mingled with others that are conspicuous, very large, gray with russet centers, and often also with irregular lines or flecks of dull green or russet. Beach calls the large dots characteristic of this variety as also of other varieties of the Blue Pearmain group. Thomas gives the dots large and indistinct; Budd and Hansen call them distinct.

Flesh and flavor: Flesh yellowish to yellow, moderately firm to firm, rather coarse, moderately juicy. Bunyard calls it tender and rather dry.

Flavor mild subacid, pleasant, aromatic, from "slightly aromatic" (Agassiz) to "decidedly and agreeably aromatic" (Beach) and "highly aromatic" (Bunyard); spicy (Budd and Hansen). Downing finds it "rather rich," and Budd and Hansen "rich subacid." Veitch credits it with "rich flavour" and George Bunyard & Co. with "first-rate flavour." Bunyard calls it sweet. Beach says it is of mild flavor and "does not rank high in quality."

Quality good to very good: "very good" in Elliott, Downing, and Budd and Hansen, and "good" in Thomas, Beach, and the Agassiz station report.

Core and seeds: Core medium (Elliott) to rather large (Beach), nearly axile, closed or somewhat open; partly open (Budd and Hansen). Core lines clasping or, with modified calyx tube, nearly meeting. Carpels broad, elongated or roundish, slightly tufted. Seeds medium or rather long, acuminate, rather light brown.

Season

The recorded season runs from October to March. Most authors give early winter, October or November into January or February. The Agassiz station gives mid-winter. Bunyard places it latest, January to March. Beach says it comes into season in October and may keep till March. In common storage it does not keep late, and it often begins to shrivel after January. Hedrick says the fruit does not keep well.

Uses

Culinary or dessert (Bunyard). Home and local market. Beach calls it not a good market fruit.

Subtypes / Variants

Not described in source.

Other

George Bunyard & Co. (1901) offered dwarf trees at 2/6. Bunyard's entry is headed "New York, 80." Hedrick's figure of the fruit is Fig. 12, marked "(3¼)."

Beach's references, in his order, begin with Kenrick, 1833, and Manning, 1838. They continue with Manning in the Magazine of Horticulture, 1840; Downing, 1845; and Phoenix in the Horticulturist, 1846. Next come Cole, 1849; Thomas, 1849; and Emmons, Natural History of New York, 1851, with colored plate No. 54. Hooper, 1857, Elliott, 1858, and the American Pomological Society Catalogue, 1862, follow, then Barry, 1883, and Lyon in the Michigan Horticultural Society Report, 1890. The later entries are Bailey's Annals of Horticulture, 1892; Waugh in the Vermont Station Annual Report, 1901; and the Canadian Horticulturist, 1902. The list closes with Budd-Hansen, 1903, and Beach and Clark, New York Station Bulletin 248, 1904.

Book Sources

Described in 7 period pomological works

Nursery Catalog Sources

Found in 25 catalogs (1845–1920) from England, Illinois, Massachusetts, Oregon, Washington

View original book sources (10)

Blue Pearmain.

Tree, hardy: shoots stout, dark color; buds, large, unsuited to exposed situations, the fruit being large and heavy is easily blown off. Fruit, very large, roundish, slightly conical, striped and blotched with purplish red over a dull ground— white bloom ; stem, short; calyx, small ; basin, deep ; core, medium; flesh, yellowish, mild sub-acid; "very good." Early Winter.

— F.R. Elliott, The Western Fruit Book (1865)

Blue Pearmain. Fruit of the largest size, roundish, regularly formed, very slightly conical. Color stripes of dark purplish-red, over a dull ground, and appearing bluish from the white bloom. Flesh yellowish, mild, rather rich, aromatic, and very good. The tree grows strongly, and bears moderate crops. October to February.

— A.J. Downing, The Fruits and Fruit Trees of America (1900)

Blue Pearmain.* Very large, roundish, inclining to oblong, slightly and obtusely conical; dark purplish red in large broken stripes on lighter ground; bloom conspicuous; dots large; indistinct; stalk three-fourths of an inch long; calyx deep set; flesh yellowish, mild sub-acid, good. Early winter. A thin bearer.

— John J. Thomas, The American Fruit Culturist (1903)

BLUE PEARMAIN.

REFERENCES.

  1. Kenrick, 1833:42. 2. Manning, 1838:55. 3. Manning, Mag. Hort., 6:172. 1840. 4. Downing, 1845:122. 5. Phoenix, Horticulturist. 1:361. 1846. 6. Cole, 1849:120. 7. Thomas, 1849:164. 8. Emmons, Nat. Hist. N. Y., 3:69. 1851. col. pl. No. 54. 9. Hooper, 1857:19. 10. Elliott, 1858:122. 11. Am. Pom. Soc. Cat., 1862. 12. Barry, 1883:343. 13. Lyon, Mich. Hort. Soc. Rpt., 1890:288. 14. Bailey, An. Hort., 1892:235. 15. Waugh, Vt. Sta. An. Rpt., 14:289. 1901. 16. Can. Hort., 25:49. 1902. 17. Budd-Hansen, 1903:52. fig. 18. Beach and Clark, N. Y. Sta. Bul., 248:113. 1904.

SYNONYM. Prolific Beauty (18) incorrectly.

  • Occasional trees are found in the oldest home orchards of the state. It is rarely planted now. In some localities it bears well, but more often it is not a reliable cropper. It is apt to have a pretty high percentage of unmarketable fruit. The fruit is of mild flavor and does not rank high in quality. The skin is thick. When well colored it is beautiful, though not brilliant, being overcast with a dull bluish bloom. In common storage it does not keep late, and by January it often becomes shriveled (18). It is not a good market fruit and is not recommended for commercial planting.

Historical. This is an old variety of uncertain origin but it is supposed to be an American variety (13). On account of its hardiness it has often been planted in the home orchards of the more elevated regions of New York and New England during the last 75 years. Probably it has been in cultivation for a century or more. Kenrick (1) mentions it as common in the vicinity of Boston in the early part of the 19th century.

TREE.

Tree becomes moderately large to large, moderately vigorous or on rich soil sometimes vigorous. Form spreading. In the nursery it is a slow, stiff grower (5). Twigs below medium, rather stout, nearly straight, rather blunt at tips, with large terminal buds; internodes medium to long. Bark very dark, being of a dull brownish-red; scarf-skin varies from thin to rather heavy; quite pubescent. Lenticels inconspicuous, scattering, below medium, roundish, raised. Buds above medium, moderately projecting, roundish, slightly pubescent, free. Leaves broad, coarsely serrated.

FRUIT.

Fruit above medium to very large; pretty uniform in size and shape. Form roundish or inclined to oblate, sometimes a little inclined to conic, irregular, often obscurely ribbed, sometimes distinctly furrowed from the cavity nearly to the basin. Stem medium length to rather short, rather thick. Cavity moderately deep, obscurely furrowed, usually covered with orange-russet or greenish-russet. Calyx partly open; lobes acute. Basin medium in depth and width, with concentric gray or russet lines, obscurely furrowed. Skin a little rough; yellow, washed and mottled with red, often deepening on one side to nearly solid red, splashed and striped with deep purplish-carmine and overspread with an abundant blue bloom from which the variety takes its name. Dots numerous, small, pale, mingled with others which are conspicuous, very large, gray with russet center and often also mingled with irregular lines or flecks of dull green or russet. The large dots are characteristic of this variety as also of other varieties of the Blue Pearmain group. Calyx tube elongated conical approaching funnel-form. Stamens basal to median. Core rather large, nearly axile, closed or somewhat open; core lines clasping or, with modified calyx tube, nearly meeting. Carpels broad, elongated or roundish, slightly tufted. Seeds medium or rather long, acuminate, rather light brown. Flesh yellowish, moderately firm, rather coarse, moderately juicy, mild subacid, decidedly and agreeably aromatic, good.

Season. Comes into season in October. It may keep till March but often begins to shrivel after January.

Use. Home and local market.

— S.A. Beach, The Apples of New York, Vol. 1 (1905)

Blue Pearmain.—Fruit very large, nearly regular, roundish to roundish oblong, very slightly conical; surface pale yellow, almost wholly covered with large dark purplish splashes and stripes, mixed nearly solid red on sunny side, the heavy white bloom over dark red ground gives the fruit a bluish color; dots distinct, white, russet, minute, some large, gray, with russet centres; cavity wide, deep, obtuse, some stellate russet; stem short; basin shallow, smooth, some with trace of russet; calyx open; segments flat convergent. Core partly open; tube funnel-shaped; stamens median. Flesh firm, moderately juicy, yellowish, spicy, pleasant, rich subacid, very good. October to February.

— J.L. Budd & N.E. Hansen, American Horticultural Manual, Part II: Systematic Pomology (1914)

BLUE PEARMAIN. New York, 80. Culinary or dessert, January to March, medium, 2⅔ by 2½, round, conical, regular. Colour, yellow entirely covered with dull crimson flush and broad broken stripes, heavily covered with bloom on the tree. Flesh, tender, yellow, rather dry, highly aromatic and sweet. Eye, slightly open in a moderately wide and deep basin. Stem, rather short in a rather wide and deep cavity. Growth, moderate, rather spreading; fertile. Leaf, rather large, greyish-green, upfolded, finely serrate. Origin, American, date uncertain, known before 1800. A hardy variety worthy of further trial. It does well in Western Counties.

— E.A. Bunyard, A Handbook of Hardy Fruits (1920)

known in New England as early as the Revolutionary War; thence its culture has spread southward to the Carolinas and westward to the Mississippi. Tree large, vigorous, upright-spreading. Leaves long. Fruit medium to large, uniform in size and shape, oblong-conic, ribbed, axis sometimes oblique; stem long, thick; cavity acuminate, wide, lipped but usually symmetrical, with red-russet or greenish outspreading rays; calyx closed; basin often oblique, shallow and obtuse to deep and abrupt, furrowed and wrinkled; skin thick, tough, smooth, yellow, striped or covered with red, deepening to almost black, obscurely striped with darker crimson and with streaks of scarf-skin, giving the effect of dull bloom; dots numerous, gray, small, rough; prevailing effect dull gray-purple; calyx-tube large, wide, cone-shape; stamens median; core large, axile, closed; core-lines clasping; carpels long-ovate, tapering both ways, emarginate, tufted; seeds often abortive, when developed of medium size, acuminate, tufted; flesh yellow, firm, tender, coarse, juicy becoming dry, mild subacid, rich, peculiarly aromatic, good; October to January or February.

  1. Blue Pearmain. (3¼)

BLUE PEARMAIN. Fig. 12. Blue Pearmain is characterized by its bluish bloom, deep purplish color, ribbed or sometimes furrowed surface, thick skin, the mild pleasant flavor of its fruits, and the hardiness of the trees all of which characters it seems to have transmitted little changed to a numerous progeny. The fruit does not keep well, and the quality is not sufficiently high to make the variety worthy except where hardiness is necessary. Blue Pearmain is known to be at least a hundred years old, but is of uncertain origin. It was first described by Kenrick in 1833. The variety is widely grown only in New England. Tree large, vigorous, spreading. Leaves broad, coarsely serrated. Fruit large to very large, uniform in size and shape, round to oblate, inclined to conic, irregular, often obscurely ribbed, sometimes distinctly furrowed from the cavity nearly to the basin; stem short, thick; cavity deep, obscurely furrowed, usually covered with orange-russet or greenish-russet; calyx partly open, acute lobes; basin medium in depth and width, with concentric gray or russet lines, obscurely furrowed; skin rough, yellow, washed and mottled with red, often deepening on one side to nearly solid red, splashed and striped with deep purplish-carmine and overspread with an abundant blue bloom; dots numerous, small, pale, mingled with others which are conspicuous, very large, gray with russet center and often also mingled with irregular lines or flecks of dull green or russet; calyx-tube elongated-conical; stamens basal; core large, axile, closed or open; core-lines clasping; carpels broad, elongated or round, tufted; seeds long, acuminate, light brown; flesh yellow, firm, coarse, juicy, mild, subacid, agreeably aromatic; good; October till March.

— U.P. Hedrick, Cyclopedia of Hardy Fruits (1922)

Planted Spring 1890. Tree a vigorous grower. Fruit large, roundish, slightly conical. Skin green, nearly covered with purple and a whitish bloom. Flesh yellowish, mildly sub-acid, slightly aromatic, quality good. Season mid-winter.

— Central Experimental Farm, Central Experimental Farm, Agassiz BC — Catalogue of Fruit Trees under Test (Bulletin No. 3, 1900) (1900)

Large, of peculiar colour, handsome, and with first-rate flavour. A.M., R.H.S. Dwarfs, 2/6.

— George Bunyard & Co., George Bunyard Fruit Catalogue (1901) (1901)

of peculiar colour and rich flavour, one of the largest of the Pearmain type, a heavy cropper. F.C.C. ... Nov. to Jan.

— James Veitch & Sons, Veitch's Fruit Trees (1911) (1911)
Prolific Beauty Dyer Gilpin Pennock Prolific Beauty