Red Rance

Origin/History

Origin unknown.

Tree

A vigorous, upright spreading grower, productive.

Fruit

Size and Form

Medium or below in size. Roundish, slightly conic in form; one source describes the form as roundish-oblate, and another as roundish-oblate with red striping, while Downing characterizes the shape as roundish and slightly conic. Across sources, the fruit is consistently placed in the medium size range.

Stem

Stalk short, inserted in a small cavity.

Cavity

Small.

Calyx

Closed.

Basin

Broad and shallow.

Skin

Color fine yellow, shaded with red and thickly covered with whitish dots. One source describes the skin more briefly as yellow-red.

Flesh and Flavor

Flesh yellowish, firm, juicy, rich, with a mild Spitzenburgh flavor. Quality rated good to very good across sources.

Core and Seeds

Not described in source.

Season

December through February. Consistently described as a winter variety across all sources.

Uses

Suitable for both kitchen and market use.

Subtypes/Variants

Not described in source.

Other

Red Rance was reported by 10 stations in the Northern Division and 9 stations in the Central Division of a horticultural survey; the asterisk notation on both figures indicates the variety was reported in more than one division within each, suggesting notable regional distribution across the northern and central United States as of 1914.