McLellan. Martin. Origin, Woodstock, Conn. Tree thrifty, upright, very productive, annual bearer, and handsome. Young shoots, dull grayish reddish brown, slightly downy.

McLellan. Fruit medium or above, roundish oblate, slightly conic, very regular, and fair. Color yellow, mostly striped, marbled, and splashed with red. Stalk short, inserted in a rather deep cavity. Calyx small, nearly closed. Basin moderate, slightly uneven. Flesh white, very tender, juicy, with a fine vinous flavor, almost saccharine. Very good. December to March.

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

McLELLAN.

REFERENCES. 1. Leavenworth, Horticulturist, 2:26. 1847. fig. 2. Thomas, 1849:169. 3. Cole, 1849:125. 4. Emmons, Nat. Hist. N. Y., 3:67. 1851. 5. Hovey, Mag. Hort., 20:508. 1854. fig. 6. Elliott, 1854:147. 7. Downing, 1857:87. 8. Hooper, 1857:57. 9. Warder, 1867:726. 10. Am. Pom. Soc. Cat., 1871:8. 11. Lyon, Mich. Hort. Soc. Rpt., 1890:294. 12. Taylor, Am. Pom. Soc. Rpt., 1895:193. 13. Burrill and McCluer, Ill. Sta. Bul., 45:309, 330. 1896. 14. Farrand, Mich. Sta. Bul., 205:42. 1903. 15. Budd-Hansen, 1903:120. fig.

SYNONYMS. Martin (1, 2, 6, 7). MCCLELLAN (1, 5). MCLELAN (8, 9). MCLELLAN (2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15).

A very choice dessert apple, handsome, fragrant, tender and excellent in quality. It comes into season a little later than Maiden Blush and may keep till January or February. When properly colored it is well adapted for fancy market and fruit-stand trade but when the color remains greenish, as it often does, the flavor is inferior. The fruit shows bruises readily and must be handled with extra care. It drops easily from the tree and on this account should be picked as soon as colored. In some cases it may pay to make two pickings. The tree comes into bearing young and is a reliable biennial bearer yielding good crops. It is only a moderately vigorous grower and probably it would be an advantage to topwork it upon some more vigorous and longer-lived stock, such as Northern Spy or Baldwin. It is not recommended for extensive commercial planting but in some cases it may be grown to a limited extent with profit.

Historical. The original tree was planted in a seedling orchard in Woodstock, Conn., about 1780 (1, 5). It has been sparingly disseminated and is known locally in various parts of New York state, but it is now seldom offered by nurserymen (12) and is little propagated.

TREE. Tree medium in size, moderately vigorous with long and moderately stout branches. Form erect, roundish, open. Twigs medium to long, erect, stout, generally somewhat curved; internodes short to medium. Bark dull, very dark reddish-brown, sometimes tinged with green and overlaid with rather heavy scarf-skin; rather heavily pubescent. Lenticels quite numerous, not very conspicuous, medium to small, roundish, sometimes a little raised. Buds above medium to large, rather deeply set in the bark, broad, flat, obtuse to somewhat acute, free, very pubescent.

FRUIT. Fruit above medium to large; uniform in size and shape. Form roundish oblate to roundish conic, rather broad and flat at the base, symmetrical or nearly so, regular to elliptical. Stem short to medium, slender. Cavity acute to acuminate, rather wide, deep, symmetrical, sometimes a little furrowed, smooth. Calyx small to medium, partly open or closed; lobes long, acuminate. Basin medium to rather small, abrupt, moderately shallow to deep, rather narrow to moderately wide, nearly round or sometimes angular, sometimes distinctly furrowed and wrinkled. Skin tough, waxen, pale yellow or greenish, blushed and mottled with bright light red splashed and striped with bright carmine. Highly colored specimens are almost entirely red and very attractive. Dots numerous but mostly inconspicuous, whitish or russet. Calyx tube funnel-form with wide limb or sometimes elongated. Stamens basal to median. Core below medium to small, axile or nearly so; cells not uniformly developed, usually pretty symmetrical, closed or partly open; core lines clasping the funnel cylinder. Carpels smooth, roundish to elliptical narrowing toward the base and apex, slightly emarginate. Seeds rather small, obtuse, smooth, dark. Flesh tinged with yellow, moderately firm, very tender, moderately fine-grained, juicy, moderately crisp, almost sweet, excellent in flavor, very good for dessert. Season October to January or February or sometimes to March.

— S.A. Beach, The Apples of New York, Vol. 2 (1905)

McLellan. Size: medium. Form: roundish (oblate). Color: yellow. Quality: very good. Use: both kitchen and market. Season: winter. Northern Division: 4 stations reporting (also reported in another division).

— Granville Lowther (ed.), Encyclopedia of Practical Horticulture (1914)

McLellan. Martin.

From Woodstock, Conn. Trees, moderate growth, annual productive bearers. Fruit, medium, round ; bright straw color, striped and marbled with lively red ; stem, short, slender ; cavity, round ; calyx, nearly closed ; basin, medium, slightly plaited ; core, medium ; seeds, small ; flesh, white, fine-grained, tender, mild sub-acid ; nearly "best." November to March.

— F.R. Elliott, The Western Fruit Book (1865)

McLellan. (Martin.) Medium in size or rather large, nearly round, smooth, regular; striped and mottled with lively clear red on yellow ground; stalk three-fourths of an inch long, slender; cavity narrow; basin narrow, waved; seeds small; flesh nearly white, fine grained, very tender, slightly sub-acid, agreeable, but not very rich. Early winter. Very productive. Connecticut. Fig. 420.

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

McLellan. — Origin, Woodstock, Connecticut; tree a thrifty upright grower, very productive, an annual bearer.

Fruit medium or above, regular, roundish oblate, regular, sometimes unequal; surface yellow, mostly covered with dark crimson, marbled, splashed, and striped, solid on sunny side; dots distinct, numerous, raised russet, small; cavity rather deep, regular, wide, obtuse; stem medium, rather slender; basin smooth, medium deep; calyx half open; segments erect convergent. Core closed; cells ovate; tube long, narrow, open to core; stamens marginal; seeds short, plump; flesh yellowish white, very tender, juicy, pleasant, vinous subacid, almost saccharine, very good. December to March.

— J.L. Budd & N.E. Hansen, American Horticultural Manual, Part II: Systematic Pomology (1914)