Plants in the Hortus

Pyrus communis ‘Poir de Beurré’

Probably identical to the pears listed as ‘Golden Beurré’ and ‘Brown Beurré’, which see.

However, the Gardener’s Chronicle does describe a French pear called ‘Poir de Beurré’: Fruit; above middle size, roundish-oval in shape. Skin; brownish olive, sprinkled with russet. Flesh; whitish, very melting, juicy and sugary, with a perfumed, delicious flavour. The tree is a good bearer, suitable for the open ground. Its season is typically September and October. [Gard. Chron. 1860].

Pyrus communis ‘Prince Albert’

‘Fruit medium sized, pyriform. Skin smooth, of a deep lemon-yellow colour, and frequently with a blush of red next the sun. Eye small and open, set in a shallow basin. Stalk an inch long, not depressed. Flesh yellowish-white, melting, juicy, sugary, and richly flavoured. An excellent pear, in use from February till March.’ [Hogg – Fruit Manual p.206/1860].

Pyrus communis ‘St. Germain’

‘Fruit large, of a pyramidal figure, tapering from the crown to the stalk, about three inches and three quarters long, and two inches and three quarters in diameter. Eye small, in a shallow basin. Stalk an inch long, curved, inserted very obliquely in the fruit without any cavity. Skin yellowish green, when fully matured with a few brownish specks on the sunny side. Flesh white, melting, and full of a very rich, saccharine, high-flavoured juice. Ripe in November, and will keep good till Christmas.’ [George Lindley – Orchard Guide p.351/1831]. But this may be the ‘spurious sort’ described by Andrew Knight in the notes below.

Pyrus communis ‘Summer Bergamot’

‘Fruit below the middle size, round, and flattened at both the extremities, about two inches deep, and two inches and a quarter in diameter. Eye small, with an obtuse closed calyx, placed in a very shallow basin. Stalk half an inch long, thick, inserted in a small round cavity. Skin greenish yellow, with a good deal of pale brown russet, and specks on the sunny side. Flesh melting, with a sugary high-flavoured juice. Ripe the beginning and middle of September.’ [George Lindley – Orchard Guide p.353/1831].

Pyrus communis ‘Summer Bonchrétien’

‘Fruit large, irregularly pyramidal, about four inches long, and three inches in diameter, exceedingly knobby and irregular in its outline, particularly about the eye. Eye small, prominent, in a narrow, shallow, obtuse-angled basin. Stalk two inches and a half long, irregular and crooked, very obliquely inserted, in a knobby, irregular cavity. Skin, when fully ripe, of a pale lemon colour, very slightly tinged with red on the sunny side, and covered all over with small green dots. Flesh yellowish, breaking, firm, juicy, very sweet and excellent. Cone very small, placed near the eye. Ripe the middle of September.’ [George Lindley – Orchard Guide p.349/1831]. It is unclear why a pear that ripens in autumn should be called ‘Summer Bonchrétien’.

Pyrus communis ‘Suzette de Bavay’

‘Fruit medium sized, turbinate. Skin yellow, covered with numerous large russet dots and traces of russet. Eye open, placed in a shallow, undulating basin. Stalk an inch long, inserted in a small cavity. Flesh melting, juicy, sugary, and vinous, with a pleasant perfume. Ripe in January and February.’ [Hogg – Fruit Manual p.215/1860].

Pyrus communis ‘Uvedale’s St. Germain’

‘Fruit very large, of an oblong figure, tapering to the crown, but compressed between the middle and the stalk; its usual size is about four inches long, and three inches broad, but sometimes much larger. Eye wide, in a deep hollow. Stalk an inch long, bent, and rather deeply inserted in an oblique angular cavity. Skin smooth, dark green, and of a dull brown on the sunny side; but as it becomes matured it is of a red colour on a yellowish ground. Flesh white, hard, and a little gritty next the core, with an austere astringent juice, which renders it unfit for eating raw, but it is excellent for baking and stewing. In use from Christmas till April.’ [George Lindley – Orchard Guide p.413/1831].

Pyrus communis ‘Van Mons Léon Leclerc’

‘Fruit very large, oblong-pyramidal. Skin dull yellow, covered with dots and tracings of russet. Eye open, set in a shallow basin, stalk an inch and a half long, curved, and inserted in a shallow cavity. Flesh yellowish-white, buttery and melting, very juicy, rich, sugary, and delicious. A remarkably fine pear. Ripe in November.’ [Hogg – Fruit Manual p.215/1860].

Pyrus communis ‘White Doyenné’

‘Fruit pretty large, roundish oblong, narrowest at the stalk, about three inches and a half long, and two inches and three quarters in diameter. Eye very small, with small, acute, closed segments of the calyx, placed in a shallow depression. Stalk three quarters of an inch long, rather thick, inserted in a small cavity; in some specimens it is diagonally inserted under a small elongated lip. Skin pale citron yellow, speckled throughout, more or less, with cinnamon russet, and tinged with orange brown on the sunny side. Flesh white, juicy, very buttery, and delicious. Ripe the end of September, and good for three or four weeks.’ [George Lindley – Orchard Guide p.386/1831].

Pyrus communis ‘Williams’ Bonchrétien’

‘Fruit pretty large, of an irregular, pyramidal, and somewhat truncated form, from three to four inches long, and from two to three inches in diameter. Eye seated on the summit, and never in a hollow or cavity, as in other varieties called Bonchrétien. Stalk an inch long, very gross and fleshy. Skin pale green, mottled all over with a mixture of darker green and russet brown, becoming yellowish and tinged with red on the sunny side when fully ripe. Flesh whitish, very tender and delicate, abounding with a sweet and agreeably perfumed juice. Ripe the end of August to the middle of September.’ [George Lindley – Orchard Guide p.350/1831].

Pyrus communis ‘Windsor’

‘Fruit middle-sized, oblong, obovate, not either pyramidal or turbinate, being widest above its middle, tapering to the crown, and suddenly contracted towards the stalk, where it is slender; about three inches and a half long, and two inches and a quarter in diameter. Eye small, with a connivent calyx, prominently placed on the summit. Stalk an inch long, slender, convexly inserted without any cavity. Skin yellowish green, full of small green specks, becoming yellow when fully ripe, and tinged with orange on the sunny side. Flesh white, soft, with a little grit at the core, and a sugary astringent juice. Ripe the end of August and beginning of September.’ [George Lindley – Orchard Guide p.351/1831].

Pyrus communis ‘Winter Crasanne’

Fruit; large, irregular turbinate in shape. Skin; greenish yellow with some patches of brown russet. Flesh; yellowish white, melting, buttery, very little grittiness, rich, sugary. The tree is a good bearer. Considered an excellent pear. Ripening in January. [HP].  

Pyrus communis ‘Winter Nélis’

‘Fruit above the middle size, somewhat oval, broadest in the middle, narrowed towards the crown, and a little more so towards the stalk, about three inches and a quarter long, and two inches and three quarters in diameter. Eye open, slightly sunk in a rather narrow basin. Stalk one inch and a half long, inserted in a narrow and rather deep cavity. Skin dull greyish green, full of grey dots, covered partly, especially on the sunny side, with a brownish-grey russet. Flesh yellowish white, melting, buttery. Juice plentiful, sugary, rich, high flavoured, with a musky perfume. In perfection in December and January’ [George Lindley – Orchard Guide p.409/1831].

Pyrus communis L.

Tree, usually with a conical crown, often thorny, the leaves oval-elliptic with scalloped margins, the flowers white in corymbs, followed by rounded to pyriform fruits, green ripening to green, brown or yellow. To 15m in the wild, but depending on variety in the cultivated pear. [RHSD, Hortus].

Pyrus communis ‘Zépherin Grégoire’

‘Fruit about medium size, roundish. Skin pale greenish-yellow, sometimes becoming of a uniform pale waxen yellow, covered with russet dots and markings. Eye very small, slightly depressed. Stalk an inch long, inserted without depression. Flesh yellow, buttery, melting, and very juicy, very rich, sugary, and vinous, with a powerful and peculiar aroma. A most delicious pear. Ripe in December and January.’ [Hogg – Fruit Manual p.206/1860].