Red Russet

Red Russet.

Origin Hampton Falls, New Hampshire.

Tree very vigorous and productive; resembling Baldwin in almost every particular.

Fruit large, roundish, conic; Skin yellow, shaded with dull red and deep carmine in the sun, and thickly covered with gray dots, and an appearance of rough russet on most of the surface; Stalk rather short and thick, inserted in a medium cavity, surrounded with thin russet; Calyx nearly closed; Segments long, recurved, in a narrow, uneven basin; Flesh yellow, solid, crisp, tender, with an excellent, rich, sub-acid flavor, somewhat resembling Baldwin. Season, January to April.—Downing.

This fruit is rarely seen in the West. It has been thought by some to have originated as a sport from the Baldwin.

— John A. Warder, American Pomology: Apples (1867)

Red Russet.

Origin, farm of Mr. Sanborn, Hampton Falls, N. H. Tree very vigorous, upright spreading, and productive. Young wood clear reddish brown.

Fruit large, roundish conic, yellow, shaded with dull red and deep carmine in the sun, and thickly covered with gray dots, with a slight appearance of rough russet on most of the surface. Stalk rather short and thick, inserted in a medium cavity, surrounded with thin russet. Calyx nearly closed. Segments long, recurved, in a narrow, uneven basin. Flesh yellow, solid, crisp, tender, with an excellent rich, subacid flavor somewhat resembling Baldwin. Very good. January to April.

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

RED RUSSET.

REFERENCES.

1. Cole, 1849:131. 2. Emmons, Nat. Hist. N. Y., 3:95. 1851. 3. Hovey, Mag. Hort., 19:125. 1853. 4. Downing, 1857:97. 5. Hovey, Mag. Hort., 29:260. 1863. fig. 6. Warder, 1867:628. 7. Thomas, 1875:229. 8. Barry, 1883:353. 9. Can. Hort., 11:283. 1888. 10. Lyon, Mich. Hort. Soc. Rpt., 1890:296. 11. Bailey, An. Hort., 1892:247. 12. Maynard, Putnam and Fletcher, Mass. Hatch. Sta. Bul., 44:4. 1897. 13. Powell and Fulton, U. S. B. P. I. Bul., 48:53. 14. Beach and Clark, N. Y. Sta. Bul., 248:140. 1904.

This is one of the russet Baldwins referred to on page 59. It originated as a sport on a Baldwin tree on the farm of Mr. Aaron Sanborn, Hampton Falls, N. H., about 1840. It was introduced to notice by Cole in 1849 (1, 3). It is distinct from the Red Russet of Hooper¹ which is the Golden Pearmain of Elliott², Downing³ and other pomological writers. Instances are known where it has borne smooth fruit intermingled on the same twigs with russet fruit.⁴ The Red Russet is almost universally considered less valuable than Baldwin both by fruit growers and fruit dealers. It is known in many parts of New York but is nowhere planted extensively and is gradually going out of cultivation.

For a technical description of the tree and fruit the reader is referred to the description of Baldwin on page 59.

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

Red Russet.

Origin, Hampton Falls, N. H. Tree, very vigorous and productive. Fruit, large, roundish conic ; skin, yellow, shaded with dull red, and deep carmine in the sun, and thickly covered with gray dots, with a slight appearance of rough russet on most of the surface ; stalk, rather short and thick, inserted in a medium cavity, surrounded with thin russet ; calyx, nearly closed, segments long, recurved in a narrow, uneven basin; flesh, yellow, solid, crisp, tender, with an excellent rich, sub-acid flavor, somewhat resembling Baldwin. January to April. (Downing.)

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

Red Russet. Large, roundish-conical; yellow, shaded with dull red and deep carmine in the sun; thickly dotted with some rough russet; stalk short and thick; calyx with long segments, basin narrow, uneven; flesh yellow, solid, crisp, tender, with an excellent, rich, sub-acid flavor, somewhat resembling Baldwin. (C. Downing.) Said to be a graft hybrid between Baldwin and Roxbury Russet.

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