Ross Nonpareil

Origin & History

A variety of Irish origin, but without any published history. Mr. Robertson, of Kilkenny, has the credit of having first introduced it to notice. It is figured by Lindley, Pl. 90; and by Ronalds, Pl. xxxiv. Warder believed it to be the celebrated Irish apple mentioned by Thompson, Lindley, and others, noting: "if not, we have found another choice fruit, which deserves to be better known." It was frequently found at exhibitions in Ohio and Indiana, often shown as Spice Russet, described by Warder as "flatter and irregular."

Tree

Very hardy and succeeds well upon most soils, and bears abundantly. A profuse bearer. Its great merit, according to the Herefordshire Pomona, is that it is a free bearer on an open standard. However, Downing notes it is "very subject to rot before ripening" and considers it "unprofitable." Thomas similarly judges it "of little value."

Fruit

Size: Sources disagree on size. Warder describes it as medium. The Herefordshire Pomona calls it middle sized, two and a half inches broad and two inches high. Downing says rather below medium size. Elliott describes it as below medium. Thomas calls it small.

Form: Roundish, even and regularly formed, narrowing a little towards the eye. Warder describes the form as regular, oblate-conical — noting that when shown as Spice Russet it appears flatter and irregular.

Stem: An inch long, slender, inserted half its length in a round and even cavity (Herefordshire Pomona). Warder describes the stem as long and inclined. Elliott notes the stem is slender.

Cavity: Deep, acute, wavy (Warder). The Herefordshire Pomona describes a round and even cavity.

Calyx: Sources disagree. Warder describes the eye as medium and closed, set in a wide, folded basin. The Herefordshire Pomona describes the eye as small and open, set in a shallow, even basin. Elliott describes the calyx as medium.

Skin: Sources mostly agree on a russet-covered fruit with faint red coloring, but differ in emphasis. Warder describes the surface as smooth, yellowish, with thin russet, rarely blushed dull carmine, with dots minute and gray. The Herefordshire Pomona describes the skin as entirely covered with thin russet, faintly tinged with red on the side next the sun. Downing similarly describes it as covered with a thin mellow russet, faintly stained with red on the sunny side. Elliott, however, describes the skin as dull red, blotched and striped, over which is a marbling of thin mellow russet — a notably different emphasis placing red as the ground color rather than the russet. Thomas notes only thin russet.

Flesh & Flavor: Greenish white (Warder alone says white), with a rich and aromatic flavor. Sources differ on texture: Warder describes the flesh as breaking, fine grained, and tender; the Herefordshire Pomona describes it as firm, crisp, brisk and sugary; Downing says tender. Elliott adds that the flesh is juicy. The flavor is sub-acid and aromatic, with Warder calling it "sub-acid, aromatic, rich" and rating the quality "almost best." The Herefordshire Pomona calls it "brisk and sugary, charged with a rich and aromatic flavour" and declares it "one of the richest flavoured dessert apples." Downing rates it "very good." Elliott rates it "very good," nearly "best." Thomas describes it as "rich sub-acid, aromatic."

Core & Seeds: Core regular, open, scarcely meeting the eye; axis short; seeds numerous, medium, plump (Warder). Other sources do not describe the core or seeds.

Season

Sources disagree. Downing and Thomas say October. Elliott says October to November. Warder says December.

Uses

A dessert or table apple.

Other

Downing notes the variety is "very subject to rot before ripening," which he considers makes it unprofitable. This susceptibility to pre-ripening rot is not mentioned by other sources, though Thomas similarly dismisses it as "of little value" without elaboration.