Tree large, vigorous, upright, dense-topped, rapid-growing, productive; trunk stocky; branches thick, light reddish-brown, overspread with thin scarf-skin, marked with large, conspicuous, numerous lenticels; branchlets slender, often willowy, long, greenish-brown, dull, smooth, pubescent only near the ends of the new growth, sprinkled with small, slightly raised, inconspicuous lenticels.
Leaf-buds small, short, pointed, plump, free; leaf-scars with prominent shoulders. Leaves 3 in. long, 1¾ in. wide, thick; apex abruptly pointed; margin glandless, variable in serrations; petiole 2 in. long. Flower-buds small, short, conical, plump, free, singly on short spurs; flowers 1⅝ in. across, in dense clusters, average 6 buds in a cluster; pedicels ⅞ in. long, lightly pubescent.
Fruit ripens in October; medium in size, 2½ in. long, 2 in. wide, obovate-conic-pyriform, irregular, with unequal sides; stem 1⅛ in. long; cavity very shallow and narrow when present, or lacking, the flesh drawn up in a lip on one side of the stem; calyx open; lobes separated at the base, broad, obtuse; basin obtuse, furrowed; skin thick, roughened with russet; color dull yellow, largely overlaid with patches of russet, marked with distinct russet dots and with a faint trace of a pinkish-red blush on the cheek next the sun; dots numerous, russet, conspicuous; flesh tinged with yellow, granular under the skin, tender, moderately juicy, vinous; quality good. Core large, closed, axile, with meeting core-lines; calyx-tube short, wide, conical; carpels ovate; seeds medium in size, width, and plumpness, obtuse.
ROOSEVELT
1. Gard. Chron. 3rd Ser. 37:243, fig. 92. 1905. 2. Rev. Hort. 454. 1905. 3. Rural N. Y. 54:826, fig. 352. 1905. 4. Bunyard Cat. 43. 1913-14. 5. Bunyard Handb. Hardy Fr. 195. 1920.
This variety is still on probation in America, with the chances strongly against it proving worthy to bear the name of the man after whom it was called. On the grounds of the New York Agricultural Experiment Station, the fruits are too small, too poorly colored, and too poor in quality to compete with those of a score of other sorts of the same season. The core is remarkably small, and the seeds are few and small, but these are insufficient merits to count against the several defects named. The tree is robust and generally satisfactory. The variety may not be at its best on the grounds of this Station, as in Europe it was heralded as a most remarkable sort—one “destined to bring about a revolution in pear-growing.” It may be worth further trial in New York.
This pear was introduced in 1905 by the noted French pomologist Charles Baltet, Troyes, France, after he had tested it for several years. He named it after President Roosevelt. The variety was approved at Horticultural Congresses in Paris, Lyons, and Orléans, as well as by the Royal Horticultural Society of London. It was received in America shortly after its dissemination in France.
Tree medium to large, vigorous, very upright, dense-topped, rapid-growing, productive; trunk slender, smooth; branches slender, smooth, glossy reddish-brown, mottled and overlaid with gray scarf-skin, marked with numerous small, raised lenticels; branchlets characteristically thick, with blunt ends, long, with short internodes, dull reddish-brown mingled with gray scarf-skin, smooth, glabrous, with many large, raised lenticels.