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Red Russet

Apple

Red Russet

Origin / History

Red Russet originated on the farm of Mr. Aaron Sanborn, Hampton Falls, N. H. Beach gives it as one of the russet Baldwins, arising as a sport on a Baldwin tree about 1840. Warder records that it "has been thought by some to have originated as a sport from the Baldwin." Thomas reports it "said to be a graft hybrid between Baldwin and Roxbury Russet." Cole introduced it to notice in 1849. Warder (1867) calls it "rarely seen in the West." Beach (1905) reports it known in many parts of New York, but nowhere planted extensively and gradually going out of cultivation.

Tree

Very vigorous, upright spreading, productive. Young wood clear reddish brown (Downing). Warder finds the tree "resembling Baldwin in almost every particular."

Fruit

Size: Large.

Form: Roundish conic.

Stem: Rather short and thick.

Cavity: Medium, surrounded with thin russet.

Calyx: Nearly closed; segments long, recurved.

Basin: Narrow, uneven.

Skin: Yellow, shaded with dull red, and deep carmine in the sun, with a slight appearance of rough russet on most of the surface. Beach records instances of the tree bearing smooth fruit intermingled on the same twigs with russet fruit.

Dots: Gray, thickly covering the surface.

Flesh and flavor: Yellow, solid, crisp, tender, with "an excellent rich, subacid flavor somewhat resembling Baldwin." Quality "very good" (Downing).

Core and seeds: Not described in source.

Season

January to April.

Uses

Beach says Red Russet is almost universally considered less valuable than Baldwin, both by fruit growers and by fruit dealers.

Subtypes / Variants

Not described in source.

Other

Beach distinguishes this variety from the Red Russet of Hooper, which is the Golden Pearmain of Elliott, Downing and other pomological writers. For a technical description of tree and fruit, Beach refers the reader to his description of Baldwin.

Book Sources

Described in 5 period pomological works

USDA Nomenclature (1905)

From W.H. Ragan, Nomenclature of the Apple, USDA Bulletin No. 56

Resembles Baldwin with a more russet skin.

Nursery Catalog Sources

Found in 3 catalogs (1900–1913) from Illinois

View original book sources (5)

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.

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. 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)

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)