The Poveshon, sometimes "Povershon", is an 18th-century American cider apple, primarily used for the production of apple cider. Grown in New Jersey before and after the American Revolution, it became obsolete by the 20th century as the cider industry in the state declined. It is considered lost, though it has possibly been rediscovered.[1]
The Poveshon was one of the many popular apple varieties that were made into cider in New Jersey. It is from the same apple growing region on the slopes of the Watchung Mountains in Essex County where the Harrison, Campfield, and Granniwinkle also originate.[2]
In A View of the Cultivation of Fruit Trees, and the Management of Orchards and Cider published in 1817 by William Coxe, the Poveshon is described as:
This is a fine cider fruit in September and October, when it ripens and falls from the tree. The size is small, the form flat, the skin smooth and of a deep red with rich yellow flesh, which is sweet, and uncommonly dry. The skin of this apple is full of dark red blotches running longitudinally, with small white spots; the tree grows very straight, with upright branches, and is a great bearer.[2]
An old New Jersey apple valued mainly for making early cider. Fruit small, oblate, deep red. Flesh yellow, dry, sweet. Good. September, October.[3]
Contemporary history
The tree is possibly lost. It has been sought for many years by those who wish to save it as part of American agricultural history and to bring it back into cultivation for cider production. A tree found in upstate New York in 2015 is believed to fit the description of the tree from 19th century texts. It has yet to be proven to be the Poveshon and not one of the thousands of other American apple varieties which have been lost.[4]
Pears are fruits produced and consumed around the world, growing on a tree and harvested in late Summer into October. The pear tree and shrub are a species of genus Pyrus, in the family Rosaceae, bearing the pomaceous fruit of the same name. Several species of pears are valued for their edible fruit and juices, while others are cultivated as trees.
Perry is an alcoholic beverage made from fermented pears, similar to the way cider is made from apples. It has been common for centuries in England, particularly in the Three Counties ; it is also made in parts of South Wales and France, especially Normandy and Anjou. It is also made in Commonwealth countries such as Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
Cider apples are a group of apple cultivars grown for their use in the production of cider. Cider apples are distinguished from "cookers" and "eaters", or dessert apples, by their bitterness or dryness of flavour, qualities which make the fruit unpalatable but can be useful in cidermaking. Some apples are considered to occupy more than one category.
The damson or damson plum, also archaically called the "damascene", is an edible drupaceous fruit, a subspecies of the plum tree. Varieties of insititia are found across Europe, but the name damson is derived from and most commonly applied to forms that are native to Great Britain. Damsons are relatively small ovoid plum-like fruit with a distinctive, somewhat astringent taste, and are widely used for culinary purposes, particularly in fruit preserves and jams.
The tamarillo is a small tree or shrub in the flowering plant family Solanaceae. It is best known as the species that bears the tamarillo, an egg-shaped edible fruit. It is also known as the tree tomato, tomate de árbol, tomate andino, tomate serrano, blood fruit, tomate de yuca, tomate de españa, sachatomate, berenjena and tamamoro in South America, and terong Belanda in Indonesia. They are popular globally, especially in Peru, Colombia, New Zealand, Ecuador, Rwanda, Australia, and the United States.
Annona reticulata is a small deciduous or semi-evergreen tree in the plant family Annonaceae and part of the Annonas group. It is best known for its fruit, called custard apple, a common name shared with fruits of several other species in the same genus: A. cherimola and A. squamosa. Its common names include wild sweetsop, soursop and bullock's heart. The fruit is sweet and useful in preparation of desserts, but is generally less popular for eating than that of A. cherimola.
Winesap is an old apple cultivar of unknown origin, dating at least to American colonial times. Its apples are sweet with a tangy finish. They are used for eating, cooking, and cider.
The origins of the Rambo apple cultivar are unknown. It may date back to the American colony of New Sweden, when in 1637 Peter Gunnarsson Rambo, a Swedish immigrant, arrived on the Kalmar Nyckel. Swedish natural historian Pehr Kalm, who wrote Travels in North America, 1747–51, took notes of his interview with Mr. Peter Rambo, grandson of Peter Gunnarsson Rambo, recording that the ″original Peter Rambo had brought apple seeds and several other tree and garden seeds with him in a box.″ The first Rambo apple tree was very likely grown from one of these seeds. There is no certainty, however, since the earliest documented mention of the apple variety's origin occurs in William Coxe's A View of the Cultivation of Fruit Trees, and the Management of Orchards and Cider, published in 1817. Coxe wrote only that the Rambo was much cultivated in Delaware, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey and took "its name from the families by whom it was introduced into notice."
The Kingston Black, also known as Black Taunton, is a cultivar of apple originating from the United Kingdom and used in making cider. The name of the cultivar comes from the apples' dark red or purplish skin, though despite the name, the fruit does not have a black hue.
The Newtown Pippin, also known as Albemarle Pippin, is an American apple that originated in the late 17th or early 18th century and is still cultivated on a small scale. At one time, there were two very similar apple cultivars known as the 'Yellow Newtown' and 'Green Newtown', one of which perhaps originated as a sport of the other.
The Norfolk Biffin, also spelt Norfolk Beefing, is a local apple cultivar originating from the English county of Norfolk, also known by several other names including Reeds Baker, Tallesin, and Winter Coleman.
'Discovery' is an early season dessert apple cultivar. One of its parents was the 'Worcester Pearmain', with the pollinator thought to possibly be 'Beauty of Bath'.
The Foxwhelp is a very old cider apple cultivar, originating in the west Midlands of England.
The Styre or Stire, also known as the Forest Styre, was an old English variety of cider apple which was formerly common in the Forest of Dean. It is currently thought to be extinct, but may still survive in old orchards or gardens.
The Harrison cider apple is one of the most famous 18th-century American cider apples, primarily used for the production of apple cider. Grown in New Jersey before and after the American Revolution, it became obsolete by the 20th century. The Harrison cider apple was considered lost until it was recovered in Livingston, New Jersey at an old cider mill in September 1976.
The Redstreak, also spelt Redstrake, Red Streak or Red-streak, is or was a very old variety of cider apple formerly commonly planted in England.
Malus niedzwetzkyana, or Niedzwetzky's apple, is a kind of apple native to certain parts of China, Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan noted for its red-fleshed, red-skinned fruit and red flowers. Some botanists consider it a distinct species, while others have argued it is simply an unusual variety of the common apple, Malus pumila.
'Surprise' is a pink-fleshed apple that is the ancestor of many of the present-day pink/red-fleshed apples bred by American growers.
Slack-ma-Girdle is an old variety of cider apple formerly widely grown in the South-West of England. It is one of a group of similar and closely related varieties all often known by the name "Woodbine".
The Woodcock was one of the oldest described English varieties of cider apple. It originated in the West of England in the counties of Herefordshire and Gloucestershire.
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