Pear tree named &#8216;P448-2&#8217;

A variety of pear tree having a high productivity, tolerance to fireblight, consistently large fruit that ripens early, and fruit having a pleasant, juicy flavor.

Latin name of the genus and species of the plant claimed: Pyrus communis.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a new and distinct variety of pear tree named P448-2 . My new tree resulted from a planned hybridization program and is a selection from crossing US386 (unpatented pear tree), as the seed parent and NJ 3 (unpatented pear tree released as Star in 1968) as the pollen parent. The resulting tree was selected when growing in a cultivated area in Vincennes, Ind.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The P448-2 variety is distinguished from other pear varieties due to the following unique combination of characteristics: high fruit productivity; consistent large fruit size; fruit which is juicy and has a pleasant flavor, even when crisp; fruit which ripens on the tree; and fruit which ripens early, observed to ripen in some years during the second week of August when grown in Vincennes, Ind.; and tolerance to fireblight.

NJ 3: Fruit size is above medium, pyriform, skin light green, flesh white, juicy, fine-grained but not buttery, quality good but internal breakdown observed in some seasons, ripens early (mid-August). Low resistance to fireblight.

US 386: Fruit size is medium, pyriform to ovate-pyriform, flesh creamy white to white, moderately juicy, moderately gritty, sweet to acidic but only fair quality, no aroma, none to light core breakdown, ripens early; (mid-August). Substantial resistance to fireblight.

Asexual reproduction of this new variety by budding and grafting onto Bartlett pear seedling (unpatented) rootstock shows that the foregoing characteristics come true to form, are firmly fixed and are established and transmitted through succeeding propagations. Asexual propagation of P448-2 was carried out at Purdue University, West Lafayette, Ind. and in New Salisbury, Ind.

The original tree and progeny have been observed growing in Vincennes, Ind. Certain characteristics of this variety, such as growth and color, may change with changing environmental conditions (e.g., light, temperature, moisture, nutrient availability, or other factors). Color descriptions and other terminology are used in accordance with their ordinary dictionary descriptions, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. Color designations are made with reference to The Royal Horticultural Society (R.H.S.) Colour Chart.

DETAILED BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION

The following detailed description of the P448-2 variety is based on observations of asexually reproduced progeny. The observed progeny were trees which were about eleven years old growing on Bartlett pear seedling rootstock in Vincennes, Ind.

Seed parent . US 386 (unpatented), which resulted from a cross between Mich US 437 (unpatented) and Re Carlos di Wurtemb (unpatented).

Pollen parent . NJ 3 (unpatented), which resulted from a cross between Beierschmidt (unpatented) and NJ 1 (unpatented).

Height . From about 14 to about 16 feet.

Width . Overall spread of about 12 feet.

Caliper . About 6 inches at about 4 inches above ground.

Trunk . Slender to moderately stocky; stockier than Honeysweet, but less stocky than Magness (unpatented).

Trunk bark texture . Scaly to slightly rough.

Trunk bark color . Grey-brown (RHS 199A), not distinguished by patches or other markings.

Primary branches . Upright growth habit, emerging from the trunk at about 30 to 40 degrees, with the angle of emergence increasing toward the top of the tree; no included bark has been observed to date; non-pubescent.

Branch color . Both one-year old and two-year old branches are grey-orange (RHS 165B).

Branch lenticels . Sparse, with a density of about 80 per square inch; oval and about 0.020 to 0.035 inch in size; grey-white (RHS 156D) in color.

Internodes . Average internode length is 0.75 to 1.25 inches on a one-year old shoot.

Disease resistance . Tolerant to fireblight, similar to the Honeysweet variety; sensitive to Psylla species.

Length . About 2.6 inches to about 3.6 inches, averaging about 2.9 inches.

Width . About 1.7 inches to about 2.1 inches, averaging about 1.9 inches.

Margin . Smooth to finely serrate.

Stipules . Two in number with opposite arrangement; needle-shaped; about 0.066 inch in diameter; yellow-green (RHS 145A) in color.

The above length, width, thickness and other measurements were taken from observation of ten typical leaves in October of 2001.

Petals . Five petals per flower and barely touching one another.

Stamen . Twenty stamens per flower, about 4 to 5 mm long, and white in color.

Time of flower opening . Flower opening in 2001 in West Lafayette, Ind. was about April 17 and bloom peaked at April 23.

Fruit (observations from a limited number of fruit in August of 2001):

Size . Large, typical fruit about 3.00 inches long and about 2.8 inches wide at the widest point.

Shape . Oblong to ovate and symmetrical, with a typical length to diameter ratio of about 1.2; no ribbing or lobes on the calyx end of the fruit.

Stem . Long and stout; typically about 1.54 inches long and 0.14 inches in diameter; grey-orange (RHS 165A) in color.

Locules . Five in number, closed, medium in size, and seeds are free from the carpel wall at maturity.

Skin . Thin, fine, and russeted, with a moderately shiny finish and no tendency to become waxy or oily in storage.

Core . Bundle area shape is basal, meeting, median; about 1.3 inches long and about 1.2 inches wide; calyx tube is closed and about 0.1 inches long; core lines are weakly defined.

Seed . Typically 1 to 2 per cell; shape is acute at tip and round at base; about 0.33 inches long and 0.22 inches wide. Color is greyed-orange (RHS 166A).

Fruit production . First picking date in 2001 was about August 6, and last picking date was about August 12; average production is 300 lbs. of fruit per tree.

Storage . Fruit can be kept at room temperature for about one week and can be kept in cold storage (34 F.) for about two months.

Usage . Eating, can be consumed crisp or soft.