Medieval Fruit Varieties
Variety: Barland (1600)
Available from:
Cummins Nursery
Notes:
An early-mid season perry pear with high acids and tannins. Origin: Traditional English cultivar, grown since before 1674. The original tree grew in the parish of Bosbury, Hereford, England and was estimated to be 200 years old in 1830. Fruit: Small, turbinate or round, 31-52 mm. long, 38-51 mm. diam.; stem slender, 25-32 mm., often fleshy where attached to fruit; no stem basin or calyx basin; calyx open. Skin dull green or yellow with gray russet at stem and calyx ends,lenticels numerous but inconspicuous. Flesh has some stone cells around core. Ripens late, September to early October in England s West Midlands, late September in western Oregon. Tree: Long lived, becoming large and tall; possibly a triploid; precocious bearing; the flowers are said to have a more pleasant fragrance than most pears; fruit scab may be severe. Perry: Fruit milled up to three days after harvest; juice acidity 0.92, tannins 0.26, specific gravity 1.058 for fruit from old trees, lower from young trees; produces a high acid, moderate tannin, fruity vintage of moderate quality. Barland perry has been reputed since the seventeenth century to have medicinal value in treating kidney disorders. - Brooks and Olmo Register of Fruit and Nut Varieties