Chaumontel
PearChaumontel
Origin / History
Old French pear, named for the village of Chaumontel (Chaumontelle in Downing), France. Merlet, in his L'Abrege des bon fruits of 1675, said Chaumontel originated from a wilding growing at Chaumontel. Bunyard says it was raised at Chaumontel about 1660.
Duhamel du Monceau saw the parent tree bearing. Hedrick dates the visit to 1765, when the tree was more than a century old and carrying a fine crop; Bunyard gives 1775. Bunyard adds that the original tree is said to have died in the cold winter of 1789.
Downing says Chaumontel succeeds well in Europe but "has not proved good here, except in very favorable situations," and that it "may be valuable South." It was planted at the Central Experimental Farm, Agassiz, British Columbia, in spring 1893.
Tree
A good, strong, vigorous grower. Growth long and straggling, making a rather large straggling tree. Young shoots yellow brown, grayish olive (Downing); long, slender, dark brown (Thomas). Leaf rather large, held flat, undulating, much twisted, coarsely serrate, turning black (Bunyard). Fertility good.
Grows well on the quince (Thomas), and is not very much dwarfed by it (Bunyard). Rather subject to scab. Requires rich warm soil (Elliott), and warm, rich cultivation to develop its good qualities (Thomas). Bunyard says it does best on a wall.
Fruit
Size: Large; 3½ by 4 (Bunyard). The Agassiz station calls it above medium.
Form: Pyriform to oblong pyriform or oblong obovate; uneven, bossed; variable in form but always long and obtuse. Body oblong or ovate, largest at the middle. Thomas gives the neck as short, obtuse, often quite obscure, so that the form approaches obovate or oblong.
Stem: About an inch long, stout, curved (Elliott). Bunyard calls it rather long, generally inserted straight.
Cavity: Stalk inserted moderately deep, moderately sunk; in an angular basin (Downing).
Calyx: Medium (Elliott); eye open (Bunyard).
Basin: Deep, broad, uneven, or angular.
Skin: Rough, from a little rough to very rough (Bunyard). Yellow, yellowish, yellowish green, or greenish yellow in the shade, with more or less brownish red. On the side exposed to the sun it is brownish red to rich deep red, a reddish cheek at Agassiz. Bunyard describes it as nearly covered with "curious purplish russet" and a red flush.
Dots: Many, numerous, sprinkled; brownish russet. Hedrick calls them brownish-red spots.
Flesh and flavor: Flesh white, yellowish at Agassiz; fine (Bunyard) to semi-fine (Hedrick). Buttery, melting, little gritty (Bunyard); rich, sugary, very sweet, of a fine flavor. Juice abundant, vinous, highly perfumed, with "a peculiar and agreeable perfume" (Downing).
Quality runs from "very good" (Elliott) and "a high class dessert pear" (Hedrick) down to "not of high quality" at Agassiz; Downing rates it "Good." Bunyard calls it "good when thoroughly well ripened and grown," and Thomas finds it "often poor" without warm, rich cultivation.
Core and seeds: Core small; seeds flattened (Elliott).
Season
November to February; early winter. Most authors end the season in December or January. Downing extends it to February.
Uses
Dessert pear.
Subtypes / Variants
Not described in source.
Other
[NOTE: Source text may be incorrect — the additional entries appended to Downing ("Rivers' Winter Beurré") and Thomas ("Winter Beurré") describe a different variety, not Chaumontel.]
Downing's entry describes a pear raised by Thomas Rivers, England. Tree moderately vigorous, spreading, an early and abundant bearer; young wood dull yellow brown. Fruit medium, roundish elongated pyriform to long pyriform, greenish. Skin rough, spotted, netted, and patched with russet. Stalk stout, curved, inclined at its insertion. Calyx partially closed, set in a shallow irregular basin. Flesh white, fine-grained, gritty at core, melting, buttery, vinous or subacid; "Good" (Downing). Season January (Thomas) to February (Downing).
Bunyard cites the Herefordshire Pomona ("Her. Pom. II., 38") for Chaumontel. Hedrick cites Downing (1869), Bunyard (1920), Duhamel's Traité des Arbres Fruitiers (1768, Pl. XL), and Leroy's Dictionnaire de Pomologie (1867, with figure).
Book Sources
Described in 5 period pomological works
Nursery Catalog Sources
Found in 7 catalogs (1845–1911) from England, Illinois, Massachusetts
- Winship's Nursery (Brighton Nurseries , operated by the Winship family), Brighton (Boston) , Massachusetts — 1845
- Hovey & Co. , Cambridge , Massachusetts — 1849
- St. Helena Nursery , Howell Prairie, Marion County, OR (Marion Co., Ogn.) — 1864
- George Bunyard & Co. , Royal Nurseries, Maidstone, Kent , England — 1900
- Central Experimental Farm , Dominion Department of Agriculture, Agassiz, British Columbia (under test; Bulletin No. 3, Second Series) — 1900
- Benjamin Buckman (personal inventory) , Farmingdale , Illinois — 1901
- James Veitch & Sons , Ltd., Royal Exotic Nursery, Chelsea, London (also Coombe Wood, Langley, and Feltham) , England — 1911
View original book sources (6)
— F.R. Elliott, The Western Fruit Book (1865)Chaumontel.
Bezi de Chaumontellu, | Winter Beurre, Beurre d'Hiver, | Oxford Chaumontel,
Foreign. Requires rich warm soil. Fruit, large, oblong obovate ; skin, rough, yellowish, brownish red in sun, russet dots ; stem, one inch, curved ; calyx, medium ; basin, deep ; core, small ; seeds, flattened : flesh, buttery, melting ; "very good." November, January.
— A.J. Downing, The Fruits and Fruit Trees of America (1900)Chaumontel.
Bezi de Chaumontelle. Oxford Chaumontel. Winter Beurré. Bon Chrétien de Chaumontel. Beurré d'Hiver. Beurré de Chaumontel. Shaumontel. Shaw-montel.
This old French Pear takes its name from the village of Chaumontelle, in France, and succeeds well in Europe, but has not proved good here, except in very favorable situations. It may be valuable South. Tree a good and vigorous grower. Young shoots yellow brown grayish olive.
Fruit large, pyriform. Skin a little rough, yellowish in the shade, dotted with many brownish russet dots, and brownish red or rich deep red in the sun. Stalk about an inch long, inserted moderately deep, in an angular basin. Flesh buttery and melting, sugary, with a peculiar and agreeable perfume. Good. November to February.
[Additional entry in this volume: "Rivers' Winter Beurré", pp. 866–866]
Rivers' Winter Beurré.
Winter Beurré (Rivers).
Raised by Thomas Rivers, England. Tree moderately vigorous, spreading, an early and abundant bearer. Young wood dull yellow brown.
Fruit medium, roundish elongated pyriform. Skin greenish, rough, spotted, netted, and patched with russet. Stalk stout, curved, inclined at its insertion. Calyx partially closed, set in a shallow irregular basin. Flesh white, fine-grained, gritty at core, melting, buttery, vinous or subacid. Good. January, February.
— John J. Thomas, The American Fruit Culturist (1903)Chaumontel. (Bezi de Chaumontelle, Winter Butter.) Large, pyriform, body oblong or ovate, neck short, obtuse, often quite obscure, and the form approaching obovate or oblong—largest at the middle; skin a little rough, yellowish in the shade, with more or less brownish-red, and rich deep red in the sun; stalk an inch long, moderately sunk; basin deep, uneven, or angular; flesh buttery, melting, sugary, with a fine flavor. Requires warm, rich cultivation to develop its good qualities, often poor. Shoots long, slender, dark brown. Grows well on the quince. Early winter. Old French.
[Additional entry in this volume: "Winter Beurré", pp. 806–806]
Winter Beurré. Medium, long pyriform, greenish, rough; flesh buttery, melting, vinous. January.
— E.A. Bunyard, A Handbook of Hardy Fruits (1920)CHAUMONTEL. Her. Pom. II., 38. (Bési de Chaumontel, Beurré d'Hiver.) Dessert, November December, large, 3½ by 4, oblong pyriform, uneven. Skin, very rough. Colour, greenish yellow nearly covered with curious purplish russet and red flush. Flesh, white, fine, melting, little gritty, very sweet and vinous flavour. Eye, open in a deep broad, uneven basin. Stem, stout, rather long, generally inserted straight. Growth, long and straggling; fertility good. Leaf, rather large, held flat, undulating, much twisted, coarsely serrate, turns black. Origin, raised at Chaumontel, France, about 1660. Du Hamel saw the original tree in 1775, and it is said to have died in the cold winter of 1789. It makes a rather large straggling tree, not very much dwarfed by quince. This fruit is good when thoroughly well ripened and grown. It is rather subject to scab and does best on a wall.
— U.P. Hedrick, The Pears of New York (1921)Chaumontel.
- Downing Fr. Trees Am. 718. 1869. 2. Bunyard Handb. Hardy Fr. 163. 1920. Besi de Chaumontel. 3. Duhamel Trait. Arb. Fr. 2:199, Pl. XL. 1768. 4. Leroy Diet. Pom. 1:266, fig. 1867.
Merlet writing in his L'Abrege des bon fruits of 1675 said that the Chaumontel pear originated from a wilding growing at Chaumontel, Fr. In 1765 Duhamel du Monceau saw the parent tree, at that time more than a century old, bearing a fine crop. Fruit large; form variable, but always long, obtuse, bossed, pyriform, yellow or yellowish-green in the shade, dotted with numerous brownish-red spots and brownish-red or deep rich red on the side exposed to the sun; flesh white, semi-fine, melting, buttery, rich and sugary; juice abundant, vinous, highly perfumed; a high class dessert pear.
— Central Experimental Farm, Central Experimental Farm, Agassiz BC — Catalogue of Fruit Trees under Test (Bulletin No. 3, 1900) (1900)Planted Spring 1893. Tree a strong grower. Fruit above medium size, pyriform. Skin yellowish green, with a reddish cheek and sprinkled with russet dots. Flesh yellowish, buttery, not of high quality. Season November and December.