French Jargonelle
Pear
USDA Pomological Watercolor Collection
French Jargonelle
Origin/History
The name "French Jargonelle" was applied by Mr. Thompson to distinguish this variety from the English Jargonelle, as it is most commonly received under that name from France. It is a higher colored and handsomer fruit than the English Jargonelle, though much inferior in quality. William Coxe (1817) listed it under the name "Bellissime d'Été, or Supreme" without further description.
Tree
The tree is of very strong, upright growth.
Fruit
Size
Medium.
Form
Obovate.
Stem
Not described in source.
Cavity
Not described in source.
Calyx
Not described in source.
Basin
Not described in source.
Skin
Light green, becoming lemon color, with a very rich, deep red cheek. The exterior is fair and tempting even when the flesh is overripe.
Flesh and Flavor
Flesh white, coarse, breaking, and sweet. Soon rots at the core. Often mealy and overripe while the exterior remains fair and tempting. Lasts only a day or two in perfection.
Core and Seeds
Not described in source.
Season
Ripens the last of July and first of August.
Uses
Not described in source.
Subtypes/Variants
Not described in source.
Book Sources
Described in 3 period pomological works
- Coxe, A View of the Cultivation of Fruit Trees (1817) — listed as Bellissime d'Ete', or Supreme
- Downing, Fruits and Fruit Trees of America (1900)
- Thomas, The American Fruit Culturist (1903)
View original book sources (3)
— William Coxe, A View of the Cultivation of Fruit Trees (1817)No. 6. Bellissime d'Ete', or Supreme.
— A.J. Downing, The Fruits and Fruit Trees of America (1900)French Jargonelle.
Bellissime d'Été. Saint Laurent. Bellissime Supreme. Muscadet d'Été. Bellissime Jargonelle. Bassin. Vermilion d'Été. Just. Red Muscadel. Belle Cornelie. Sabine d'Été. Butler's Harvest. Summer Beauty. Cuisse Madame. English Red Cheek. Summer Jargonelle. Red Cheek. Cuisse Dame d'Été. Udal. Fusée d'Été. Laurentienne.
This, which Mr. Thompson calls, by way of distinction, the French Jargonelle, because it is most commonly received under that name from France, is a higher colored and handsomer fruit than the English Jargonelle, though much inferior in quality, and, in fact, lasts only a day or two in perfection, and is often mealy and overripe, while the exterior is fair and tempting. The tree is of very strong, upright growth.
Fruit of medium size, obovate in form, light green, becoming lemon color, with a very rich, deep red cheek. Flesh white, coarse, breaking, sweet, and soon rots at the core. Ripens the last of July and first of August.
— John J. Thomas, The American Fruit Culturist (1903)Bellissime d'Eté. See French Jargonelle. Bellissime Jargonelle. See French Jargonelle.