Buncombe
Apple
USDA Pomological Watercolor Collection
Buncombe
Origin / History
Origin, North Carolina.
Tree
Moderate upright grower. An annual bearer. Lowther's station table lists it in the Central Division (4 reporting stations, also reported in another division) and the Southern Division (9 reporting stations, also reported in another division); not reported in the Northern Division.
Fruit
Size: Medium.
Form: Roundish oblong, conic, regular, often unequal (Budd and Hansen); roundish oblate (Lowther).
Stem: Short.
Cavity: Regular, acuminate, deep, narrow, green or slightly russeted.
Calyx: Closed; segments erect, convergent. Tube funnel-shaped, open to core; stamens marginal.
Basin: Narrow, smooth, very shallow.
Skin: Smooth, waxen; yellowish white, almost wholly covered with deep purplish red, obscurely striped and splashed. Color given by Lowther as yellow-red.
Dots: Obscure, many, minute, white.
Flesh and flavor: Whitish yellow, juicy, tender; mild subacid, or nearly sweet, rich, slightly aromatic. Quality "good to very good" (Budd and Hansen); "good" (Lowther).
Core and seeds: Core closed, clasping, irregular; cells elliptical. Seeds large, flattened, many.
Season
Winter (Lowther); January to March (Budd and Hansen).
Uses
Both kitchen and market (Lowther).
Subtypes / Variants
Not described in source.
Other
Not described in source.
Book Sources
Described in 2 period pomological works
Nursery Catalog Sources
Found in 2 catalogs (1886–1900) from Alabama
- Huntsville Wholesale Nurseries (Jessie S. Moss , Proprietor; W.F. Heikes, Manager), Huntsville , Alabama — 1886
- Central Experimental Farm , Dominion Department of Agriculture, Agassiz, British Columbia (under test; Bulletin No. 3, Second Series) — 1900
View original book sources (2)
— J.L. Budd & N.E. Hansen, American Horticultural Manual, Part II: Systematic Pomology (1914)Buncombe (Red Winter Pearmain).—Origin, North Carolina; tree a moderate upright grower, and an annual bearer.
Fruit medium, roundish oblong, conic, regular, often unequal; surface smooth, waxen, yellowish white, almost wholly covered with deep purplish red, obscurely striped and splashed; dots obscure, many, minute, white; cavity regular, acuminate, deep, narrow, green or slightly russeted; stem short; basin narrow, smooth, very shallow; calyx closed; segments erect convergent. Core closed, clasping, irregular; cells elliptical; tube funnel-shaped, open to core; stamens marginal; seeds large, flattened, many; flesh whitish yellow, juicy, tender, mild subacid, or nearly sweet, rich, slightly aromatic, good to very good. January to March.
— Granville Lowther (ed.), Encyclopedia of Practical Horticulture (1914)Buncombe. Size: medium. Form: roundish oblate. Color: yellow-red. Quality: good. Use: both kitchen and market. Season: winter. Northern Division: not reported. Central Division: 4 reporting stations (also reported in another division). Southern Division: 9 reporting stations (also reported in another division).