Royal d'Hiver
PearRoyal d'Hiver
Origin/History
The origin of the Royal d'Hiver is uncertain. In 1704, Le Gentil, director of the orchard at the Chartreux Convent of Paris, reported that it was a new pear and had been brought from Constantinople for the King (Louis XIV). The Turkish origin of the pear, however, was probably based on not much more than hearsay.
Tree
Not described in source.
Fruit
Form and size: Large, turbinate-obtuse, bossed.
Skin: Fine, dull lemon-yellow, washed with orange-red on the side next the sun, dotted and marbled with fawn.
Flesh: Yellow-white, fine, melting or semi-melting, juicy, saccharine, sweet, with a pleasant musky flavor. Quality: good.
Stem, Cavity, Calyx, Basin, Core, and Seeds
Not described in source.
Season
November to January.
Uses
Not described in source.
Book Sources
Described in 1 period pomological work
View original book sources (1)
— U.P. Hedrick, The Pears of New York (1921)Royal d'Hiver.
- Duhamel Trait. Arb. Fr. 2:191, Pl. XXXV. 1768. 2. Hogg Fruit Man. 640. 1884.
The origin of the Royal d'Hiver is uncertain. In 1704 Le Gentil, director of the orchard at the Chartreux Convent of Paris, said that it was a new pear and had been brought from Constantinople for the King (Louis XIV). The Turkish origin of the pear, however, was probably based on not much more than hearsay.
Fruit large, turbinate-obtuse, bossed; skin fine, dull lemon-yellow, washed with orange-red on the side next the sun, dotted and marbled with fawn; flesh yellow-white, fine, melting or semi-melting, juicy, saccharine, sweet and having a pleasant, musky flavor; good; Nov. to Jan.