Duffield Pippin
Apple
Duffield Pippin
Origin/History
A seedling originating in Pennsylvania at the beginning of the nineteenth century, raised by the ancestors of the Rev. George Duffield, D.D., for whom it was named. Warder (1867), working from specimens supplied by T. T. Lyon of Michigan, records that it received a first premium at the Michigan State Fair as a valuable winter variety. Downing (1900) describes it as "probably an old variety, claimed as a seedling of the Rev. George Duffield's ancestors."
Tree
Not described in source.
Fruit
Size: Warder describes the fruit as large; Downing gives it as medium.
Form: Warder describes it as round, sometimes conic, and regular. Downing gives the form as roundish oblate. These descriptions conflict and likely reflect different specimens or selections.
Stem: Medium to long (Warder).
Cavity: Deep, narrow, acute (Warder).
Calyx: Eye small, closed (Warder).
Basin: Abrupt, narrow, folded (Warder).
Skin: Warder describes the surface as smooth, yellowish-green, blushed. Downing describes the color as pale yellow, with a shade of light crimson in the sun. Both sources indicate a blush, but differ on the ground color (yellowish-green vs. pale yellow).
Dots: Scattered, minute, indented (Warder).
Flesh: Warder describes the flesh as yellow, breaking, and juicy. Downing gives it as yellowish, juicy, tender, and pleasant. The two sources agree on color and juiciness but differ on texture — Warder's "breaking" suggests a crisp, snapping quality, while Downing's "tender" implies a softer texture.
Flavor: Subacid (both sources). Downing adds the qualifier "pleasant."
Core/Seeds: Core closed, clasping; seeds plump, brown (Warder).
Quality: Good (both sources).
Season
The two sources conflict significantly on season. Warder places it in January through April, consistent with its designation as a valuable winter keeper. Downing gives November. These may reflect different regional conditions, harvest versus peak-eating timing, or genuine varietal disagreement.
Uses
Table, kitchen, and market (Warder).
Subtypes/Variants
Not described in source.
Other
Not described in source.
Book Sources
Described in 2 period pomological works
View original book sources (2)
— John A. Warder, American Pomology: Apples (1867)Duffield Pippin.
Specimens from my friend T. T. Lyon, of Michigan, who says it is a seedling that originated in Pennsylvania, at the beginning of the present century, with the ancestors of Geo. Duffield, D.D., for whom it was named, when it received a first premium at the Michigan State Fair, as a valuable winter variety.
Fruit large, handsome, round, sometimes conic, regular; Surface smooth, yellowish-green, blushed; Dots scattered, minute, indented. Basin abrupt, narrow, folded; Eye small, closed. Cavity deep, narrow, acute; Stem medium to long. Core closed, clasping; Seeds plump, brown; Flesh yellow, breaking, juicy; Flavor sub-acid; Quality good; Uses table, kitchen and market; Season January to April.
— A.J. Downing, The Fruits and Fruit Trees of America (1900)Duffield Pippin. Probably an old variety, claimed as a seedling of the Rev. George Duffield's ancestors. Fruit medium, roundish oblate, pale yellow, with shade of light crimson in the sun. Flesh yellowish, juicy, tender, pleasant, subacid. Good. November.