English Russet. Poughkeepsie Russet. Po'keepsie Russet. The English Russet is a valuable, long-keeping variety, extensively cultivated, and well known by this name, but which we have not been able to identify with any English sort. It is not fit for use until February, and may be kept till July, which, together with its great productiveness and good flavor, renders it a very valuable market fruit. The trees grow very straight, and form upright heads, and the wood is smooth and of a reddish brown. Fruit of medium size, roundish, slightly conical, and very regularly formed. Skin pale greenish yellow, about two-thirds covered with russet, which is thickest near the stalk. Calyx small, closed, and set in an even, round basin, of moderate depth. Stalk rather small, projecting even with the base, and pretty deeply inserted in a narrow, smooth cavity. Flesh yellowish white, firm, crisp, with a pleasant, mild, slightly subacid flavor. Good. January to May. The English Russet described by Warder is entirely distinct, being, as he describes, large, globular, flattened, somewhat one-sided. Surface uneven, green. In season from December to January.

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

English Russet.* (Poughkeepsie Russet.) Medium or rather small, roundish conical, regular; surface more or less overspread with brownish russet on light greenish yellow ground; in large exposed specimens, wholly russeted; stalk one-half to three-fourths of an inch long; cavity moderate, round; basin smooth; flesh greenish or yellowish white, texture fine, rather firm, with an aromatic, sub-acid flavor. Keeps through spring, and often through summer for twelve months. Growth upright, shoots lively brown. A profuse bearer. A profitable market variety, but of rather poor quality. New York.

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

ENGLISH RUSSET.

References.

1. Downing, 1845:132. fig. 2. Thomas, 1849:180, 190. fig. 3. Phoenix, Horticulturist, 1850:470. 4. Emmons, Nat. Hist. N. Y., 3:99. 1851. fig. 5. Elliott, 1858:98. 6. Am. Pom. Soc. Cat., 1862. 7. Downing, 1872:162. fig. 8. Downing, C, Am. Pom. Soc. Rpt., 1875:36. 9. Barry, 1883:345. 10. Bailey, An. Hort., 1892:238. 11. Munson, Me. Sta. Rpt., 1893:132. 12. Budd-Hansen, 1903:75. 13. Beach and Clark, N. Y. Sta. Bul., 248:118. 1904.

Synonyms. English Russet (5). Poughkeepsie Russet (5). Poughkeepsie Russet (2, 7, 9, 11). Winter Russet (3, 5).

A greenish-yellow russet of medium size or rather small, pretty uniform in size, not especially attractive in color nor high in quality, but one of the best keeping apples known. In ordinary cellar storage it has often been kept till the next crop has ripened. Late in the season it is apt to shrivel some. Fruit-dealers report that the fruit from Southern and Southwestern New York is larger and has poorer keeping quality, while that from Northern and Western New York is smaller and keeps better.

Within recent years it has been in good demand for export trade, bringing relatively better prices in Europe than in America. It is not very good for cooking, but has the reputation of making exceptionally good cider. It is acceptable for dessert following the season of Esopus Spitzenburg and Baldwin. The fruit hangs well to the tree, but there is apt to be considerable loss because a relatively large percentage of the apples are too small for market. Where insects are not controlled the fruit is often knotty. The trees commonly bear biennially and only moderately, heavy crops being rare.

English Russet and Golden Russet Compared.

It may be distinguished from the Golden Russet, which is also called by some English Golden Russet, by its straight-growing habit, with erect shoots forming an upright or round top. The Golden Russet trees are more vigorous, spreading, irregular and bushy. The English Russet twigs of one season's growth have more of a clear reddish-brown color, and the lenticels, being comparatively dull in color and only moderately numerous, are not very conspicuous, although they are sometimes large, while the Golden Russet twigs when highly colored are darker brown, varying towards olive-green where the color is less strongly developed. They are finely mottled with grayish scarf-skin, and the roundish lenticels, although they are usually small, are numerous and conspicuous, having a clear, pale color. On the bark of the second season's growth the lenticels are elongated transversely, still numerous and decidedly conspicuous.

In the English Russet the tendency of the fruit to become narrow towards the eye is more marked than in the Golden Russet, and its calyx is more often open, with the lobes reflexed. The Golden Russet basin is often the wider and markedly saucer-shaped, with the calyx set in a narrow, green or yellowish circle which contrasts sharply with the surrounding russet. The stem of the Golden Russet is usually the shorter and stouter, while that of the English Russet often has a brownish-red streak not found on the other. The cavity of the Golden Russet is somewhat larger and wider, but on the average is hardly as deep as that of the English Russet. It is often marked with grayish dots, while that of the English Russet is not. The skin of the Golden Russet varies from a dull greenish russet to golden russet; and when grown under favorable conditions sometimes has a bronze blush, but it does not take a polish. The skin of the English Russet shows no sign of a blush, but it is somewhat the smoother, paler and brighter in color, and takes a good polish. The flesh of the Golden Russet is richer in flavor, more tender, and of higher quality than that of the English Russet; its seeds have a more marked red tinge; its core is more distinctly abaxile; its cells are more often unsymmetrical; its carpels are more concave and its seeds are broader, more irregular in form and size, less acute and more distinctly tufted.

Historical. Although this has long been extensively grown under the name English Russet it has not been identified with any European variety and its origin is unknown. It is much grown in Westchester and Putnam counties and is found in old orchards throughout the State. It is distinct from the English Russet of Warder,¹ also from that described by Burrill and McCluer² as the “English Russet of England.”

¹Amer. Pom. 1867:625. ²Ill. Sta. Bul., 45:320. 1896.

Tree.

Tree medium in size to rather large, moderately vigorous to vigorous. Form upright. Twigs erect, medium or above medium in length, moderately stout to rather slender, often with large terminal bud; internodes short. Bark rather dark clear brownish-red or, on the shaded side, brownish-green, covered sparingly with gray scarf-skin; somewhat pubescent. Lenticels moderately abundant, not particularly conspicuous but rather dull colored, often roundish, sometimes large. Buds often short, plump, obtuse to acute, moderately pubescent, rather deeply set in the bark, free.

Fruit.

Fruit medium to rather small; pretty uniform in size and shape. Form roundish, more or less inclined to conic, pretty regular and symmetrical, sometimes faintly ribbed, occasionally sides unequal. Stem moderately thick to rather slender, medium in length to short, often streaked on one side with brownish-red, usually not exserted. Cavity acute to somewhat acuminate, rather narrow to medium in width, moderately deep to deep, symmetrical or slightly compressed, occasionally lipped, furrowed obscurely if at all. Calyx small to medium, usually open, sometimes closed; segments often long, acute and reflexed. Basin rather abrupt, moderately deep, moderately wide to rather narrow, symmetrical.

Skin tough, takes a good polish, varies from pale green to yellow more or less covered with russet, the base often being entirely russeted. Highly colored specimens become clear golden russet but have no perceptible shade of red. Dots inconspicuous, round or irregular, dark russet.

Calyx tube rather narrow, cone-shape, sometimes funnel-form. Stamens basal to median.

Core rather small, abaxile; cells pretty symmetrical, open, sometimes closed; core lines usually meeting, but with a funnel-form calyx tube they are clasping. Carpels rather flat, roundish to broadly ovate, slightly tufted, but slightly emarginate if at all. Seeds numerous, medium in size, plump, rather narrow, acute to acuminate, rather light brown, sometimes slightly tufted.

Flesh yellowish-white, firm, rather crisp, moderately tender, fine-grained, not very juicy, somewhat aromatic, pleasant, rather mild subacid, good.

Season January to May or later.

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

ENGLISH RUSSET. Winter Russet. English Russet is preëminent among apples because its fruits keep latest of all—often from one season until the next. There is little else to extol, since the fruits are not good in quality, attractive in color, nor even up to medium size. The tree falls below the mark in the several essentials of a good apple-tree. The day of English Russet passed with the advent of cold storage. The variety is often confused with Golden Russet, from which it may be easily distinguished if their descriptions be closely compared. Despite its name, this is an American apple from southeastern New York, first described in 1845. Tree large, upright. Fruit small, uniform in size and shape, round, inclined to conic, regular and symmetrical, sometimes faintly ribbed; stem slender, medium in length, often streaked on one side with brownish-red, usually not exserted; cavity acute to acuminate, narrow, deep, symmetrical or compressed, occasionally lipped; calyx small, usually open; segments long, acute and reflexed; basin abrupt, deep, narrow, symmetrical; skin tough, varies from pale green to yellow more or less covered with russet, the base often entirely russeted; dots inconspicuous, round or irregular, dark russet; calyx-tube narrow, cone-shape; stamens basal; core small, abaxile; cells symmetrical, open, sometimes closed; core-lines meeting; carpels flat, round to broad-ovate, tufted; seeds numerous, plump, narrow, acute to acuminate, light brown, sometimes tufted; flesh yellow, firm, crisp, tender, fine-grained, aromatic, pleasant, mild, subacid; good; January to May.

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