Zephirin Gregoire

[NOTE: Source text may be incorrect — F.R. Elliott's entry (1865) and the second entries in Downing, Thomas, and Hedrick describe "Zephirin Louis Gregoire" or "Zephirin Louis." Downing, Thomas, and Hedrick treat it as a pear separate from Zephirin Gregoire. Its cavity, flesh, and season do not match Zephirin Gregoire, so it is kept under Other. The Rivers catalogue entry ("medium; very, late and delicious pear of the pear stock. Jan.-") is garbled and is used only for what can be read from it.]

Origin / History

Raised by M. Gregoire at Jodoigne, Belgium; Hedrick calls him a pomologist. Bunyard says it was raised supposedly from seeds of Passe Colmar. Downing gives 1843 as the year it was raised, and Bunyard says it first fruited in 1843. Hedrick says it was raised about 1831. Hedrick cites accounts in the Horticulturist 9:78 (1854) and Ann. Pom. Belge 3:79 (1855), both figured. Bunyard cites Her. Pom., II., 38. Bunyard calls it "this valuable fruit" and "one of the most reliable of its season." The Rivers catalogue (1914) calls it a "very late and delicious pear."

Tree

Downing calls the tree a free grower, and Hedrick calls it pyramidal and vigorous. Bunyard gives the growth as "very dwarf." Productive: very productive (Hedrick), fertility good (Bunyard). Young wood smooth, light olive-yellow-brown (Downing). Leaf rather small, round oval, upfolded, undulated, generally entire, turning dark claret red (Bunyard). Bunyard says it "should be worked on pear." Hedrick says it succeeds best upon pear stock. The Rivers catalogue also associates it with the pear stock.

Fruit

Size: Medium to above medium, the upper end from Hedrick. Bunyard alone calls it small, giving 2½ by 2¾.

Form: Roundish to round, turbinate to obovate or conical. Thomas calls it turbinate and Bloodgood-shaped. Bunyard calls it round conical, and Hedrick roundish-obovate. Downing calls it irregular, roundish acute pyriform.

Stem: Short to medium in length. Downing calls it short and Bunyard rather short. Thomas gives it as one inch long, and Hedrick calls it medium in length. Fleshy, very fleshy at insertion (Downing). Hedrick says it is set obliquely. Bunyard instead describes it as very stout and woody.

Cavity: None; the stem is inserted on the level, without depression.

Calyx: Small or rather small, open. Segments long (Downing).

Basin: Shallow, even, a slight depression. Thomas calls it narrow.

Skin: Smooth (Bunyard). Light green or pale greenish yellow, fading to pale yellow-green or becoming yellow. Hedrick says it becomes a uniform pale waxen yellow. Reddish or reddened in the sun, "often" so according to Hedrick. Marked with patches of russet; Hedrick says covered with patches. Bunyard describes the russet as irregular patches of fine cinnamon russet.

Dots: Many, numerous, small, green and gray.

Flesh and flavor: Whitish to white, yellowish white, or pale yellow. Buttery, melting, very tender, fine-grained, juicy. Very sweet (Bunyard). Hedrick calls it sugary, rich, and vinous. Perfumed to highly perfumed; Hedrick calls it highly aromatic. Downing gives the quality as "good to very good" and Thomas as "excellent." The Rivers catalogue calls it "delicious."

Core and seeds: Not described in source.

Season

The recorded season runs from October to February or later. Most authors give November into January or February. Downing gives the earliest and shortest season, October and November. The Rivers catalogue calls it "very late" and gives "Jan.-" with no closing month. Bunyard says it shares with Josephine de Malines the quality of keeping over a long season in the fruit room.

Uses

A dessert pear (Bunyard).

Subtypes / Variants

Not described in source.

Other

Zephirin Louis, entered also as Zephirin Louis Gregoire, is described by Elliott and in the second entries of Downing, Thomas, and Hedrick. Downing says it was originated and first described by M. Gregoire of Jodoigne, Belgium. Hedrick names the raiser as M. Xavier Gregoire of Jodoigne and says it was first reported in 1849. Elliott calls it "foreign." Elliott and Downing cite "Al. Pom." Hedrick cites Ann. Pom. Belge 4:95 (1856) and Downing Fr. Trees Am. 886 (1869).

Tree of moderate growth, healthy, rather scraggly (Hedrick). Elliott calls it productive, and Hedrick moderately productive.

Fruit medium to below medium, the lower end from Hedrick. Form turbinate (Elliott), or roundish to roundish obovate. Skin yellow with a crimson cheek (Elliott). Downing gives dull greenish yellow, clouded with brownish red and shades of russet. Hedrick gives greenish yellow, rusty red becoming bright vermilion in the sun, thickly sprinkled with large dark brown-russet patches and dots. Elliott says the skin is slightly russeted about the stalk. Stalk short and thick (Elliott) to very short, inserted in a small, narrow, round cavity. Calyx or eye small; Hedrick calls it open. Elliott gives the basin as shallow and Hedrick as deep.

Flesh white (Elliott) or yellowish white tinged with green. Elliott calls it melting. Hedrick calls it coarse-grained, crisp, and rather half melting, and Downing half melting. Juicy to very juicy, sweet. Delicately perfumed (Elliott) or slightly aromatic. Quality "good" (Hedrick). Season December (Elliott) to January (Downing); Hedrick gives December and January.