Pear Admiral Jérve

An old autumn French variety of unknown origin. Approved for the North Caucasus region but rarely grown; its importance is increasing recently.

A weakly-growing tree with a pyramidal, sparse crown and long branches covered with numerous fruit buds. Main scaffold branches emerge from the trunk at an 80° angle. Weak branching ability. Bark on the trunk and scaffold branches is gray and smooth. Moderate leafing. Bears fruit on fruit buds on 3-4-year-old wood.

Shoots are short, medium-thick, straight, brown, with small, light-brown, barely noticeable lenticels. Buds are small, dark brown, slightly raised, narrow-conical, pointed. Leaves are small, egg-shaped, with a saddle-like blade, margins slightly uplifted upwards, pointed tip downwards, fine serrated edges, broad-toothed. Young leaves are slightly hairy.

Flowering occurs in mid-early season.

Fruits are above-average size (160-200 g) or large, pear-shaped, with a warty surface. Skin is medium-thick, rough, greenish-yellow during harvest, almost entirely golden-brown. Fruit stalk is short, thick, positioned at an angle in a deep narrow groove. Receptacle is small, closed.

Flesh is white or cream-colored, tender, melting, juicy, finely-grained, slightly acidic-sweet, aromatic, excellent flavor. Under Kuban conditions, fruits contain 14.5% soluble solids, 8.7% sugars, 0.31% titratable acids, 6.4 mg/100g ascorbic acid, and 60 mg/100g raw mass of P-active catechins.

Harvesting maturity occurs at the end of September, consumer maturity in October. Fruits store well in refrigeration until January. Fruits remain firmly attached on the tree, do not drop. Fruit transportability is good. Mainly consumed fresh.

Begins fruiting at 4-5 years. The variety is fairly cold-hardy, productive, resistant to scab, susceptible to bacterial leaf scorch.

Advantages of the variety: weak tree growth, early fruiting, attractive transportable fruits.

Disadvantages of the variety: weak resistance to bacterial leaf scorch, sensitivity to soil-climate conditions for cultivation.

Widely used in breeding; donor of weak-growing trees.