Griotte de Kleparow ( pl, Wiśnia Kleparowska, french: Griotte de Kleparow, german: Kleparower Süssweichsel — literally "Sweet Cherry of Klepariv") is a dark-red morello, or Griotte, type of cherry which originated from the outskirts of

Lviv Lviv ( uk, Львів) is the largest city in western Ukraine, and the seventh-largest in Ukraine, with a population of . It serves as the administrative centre of Lviv Oblast and Lviv Raion, and is one of the main cultural centres of Ukrain ...

, modern

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

Origin and history

The 'Griotte de Kleparow' was first selected and grown in the historical area of Klepariv, now a suburb of the city of

. It is of unknown parentage, although it is probably a

cultivar A cultivar is a type of cultivated plant that people have selected for desired traits and when propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and stem cuttings, offsets, grafting, tissue culture ...

of sour cherry (''

Prunus cerasus ''Prunus cerasus'' (sour cherry, tart cherry, or dwarf cherry) is a species of ''Prunus'' in the subgenus '' Cerasus'' (cherries), native to much of Europe and southwest Asia. It is closely related to the sweet cherry (''Prunus avium''), but ha ...

''). One source states that it is a

hybrid Hybrid may refer to: Science * Hybrid (biology), an offspring resulting from cross-breeding ** Hybrid grape, grape varieties produced by cross-breeding two ''Vitis'' species ** Hybridity, the property of a hybrid plant which is a union of two dif ...

of sour cherry and wild cherry (''

Prunus avium ''Prunus avium'', commonly called wild cherry, sweet cherry, gean, or bird cherryWorld Economic Plants: A Standard Reference, Second Edition'. CRC Press; 19 April 2016. . p. 833–. is a species of cherry, a flowering plant in the rose family, ...

'').Lemko, I. (2003) ''Lviv above all''. "Piramida", In 1555 Lviv's

city council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counc ...

issued a

law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...

ordering its citizens to protect this variety of tree and encouraging its cultivation. This variety became very popular in the 18th and 19th centuries, and its cultivation spread to other parts of

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

, the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

,William Prince & Sons (1837
''Annual catalogue of fruit and ornamental trees and plants cultivated at the Linnean Botanic Garden and Nurseries''.
William Prince & Sons, New York and Australia. It was first botanically described in 1792 by Johann Kraft in his ''Pomona Austriaca''.Kraft, Johann (1792). ''Pomona Austriaca. Abhandlung von den Obstbäumen: worinn ihre Gestalt, Erziehung und Pflege angezeigt und beschrieben wird''. Gräffer, Vienna The first known use of the term 'Griotte de Kleparow' was in Great Britain in 1831,Royal Horticultural Society (1831)
''A catalogue of the fruits cultivated in the garden of the Horticultural Society of London''.
2nd Edition. Printed for the Society, by W. Nicol, Clevelend Row. and thereafter this was the most commonly used name internationally in

botanical Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek wo ...

and pomological literature. In Ukraine, the cultivation of 'Griotte de Kleparow' was neglected in the 1930s and it probably has disappeared. Worldwide, the number of cherry cultivars grown has been dramatically reduced, and this variety is no longer commercially grown. It is probably extinct in most countries, though there is some interest in its preservation in France by a heritage fruit society.

General description

The characteristics of the cultivar have been described in a number of texts:Hedrick, U. P. (1914)
''The Cherries of New York''
Report of the New York Agricultural Experiment Station for the Year 1914. Vol.2, Albany, J. B. Lyon company, state printers.

Tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that are ...

: strong in growth, large, productive. Branches long, slender, and drooping. Leaves: Summer leaves have light green color with little red nuances. Big leaves, are oval and extended, have a long and sharp end, and are very dented, supported by short, strong, red leaf stalks. Stipules are of medium length, a bit extended at the base, strongly dented. Leaves during period of fruit production have short ends, shrunken at their base, have intense green color and are supported by medium-length leaf stalks.

Flowers A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism ...

: medium or rather small, elliptic, concave

petals Petals are modified leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often brightly colored or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''corolla''. Petals are usually ...

, covering partially each other; short, a little bit large, almost sharp, strong red divisions of calyx.

Pedicel Pedicle or pedicel may refer to: Human anatomy *Pedicle of vertebral arch, the segment between the transverse process and the vertebral body, and is often used as a radiographic marker and entry point in vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty procedures ...

is short and strong.

Fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...

: medium size, generally attached in pairs, roundish-cordate to roundish-oblate, sides often compressed; suture shallow, often a line; stem long, slender, set in a wide, deep cavity. Skin tough, clinging to the flesh, glossy, dark brownish-red, deep black when ripe. Stalk 50 mm long. It ripens at the end of July.

Flesh Flesh is any aggregation of soft tissues of an organism. Various multicellular organisms have soft tissues that may be called "flesh". In mammals, including humans, ''flesh'' encompasses muscles, fats and other loose connective tissues, but ...

: tender, fibrous, light to dark colored, juicy, with a rich, sweet and sub-acid flavor, aromatic; quality fair. Pit: small,

turgid Turgor pressure is the force within the cell that pushes the plasma membrane against the cell wall. It is also called ''hydrostatic pressure'', and is defined as the pressure in a fluid measured at a certain point within itself when at equilibriu ...

, almost spherical.

Propagation Propagation can refer to: * Chain propagation in a chemical reaction mechanism *Crack propagation, the growth of a crack during the fracture of materials * Propaganda, non-objective information used to further an agenda * Reproduction, and other fo ...

: The cultivar can be grown from seed.

Uses

''Griotte'' is the French word for Morello cherry (a type of sour cherry), and the 'Griotte de Kleparow' is distinguished from other sour cherry varieties like the

Montmorency cherry The Montmorency cherry is a variety of sour cherry (''Prunus cerasus'') grown in Europe, Canada, and the United States, particularly in the Grand Traverse Bay region of Northwest Michigan and in Door County, Wisconsin. Montmorency cherries are par ...

by having darker flesh and juice. The cultivar became popular in Europe for use as a table ( dessert) fruit and for making

cherry juice Cherry juice is a fruit juice consisting of the juice of cherries. It is consumed as a beverage and used as an ingredient in various foods, processed foods and beverages. It is also marketed as a health supplement. It is produced by hot- or co ...

.Lucas E., Oberdieck G. (1875
''Illustriertes Handbuch der Obstkunde''.
Stuttgart. In Germany in 1824, Lippold and Boumann described it as follows: In the United States, an 1837 nursery

catalog Catalog or catalogue may refer to: *Cataloging **'emmy on the 'og **in science and technology ***Library catalog, a catalog of books and other media ****Union catalog, a combined library catalog describing the collections of a number of libraries ...

offered grown plants for sale for $0.75 to $1.00 each, and described the trees as "acquiring a medium height, with compact and spherical heads, and able to sustain severe northern climates." It also stated that the cultivar was "most esteemed for quality" and "best for tarts, wine and preserves." In Great Britain, in 1842 the cultivar was listed as one of 61 cherry varieties "worthy of cultivation" and useful for the table (dessert).Royal Horticultural Society (1831)
''A catalogue of the fruits cultivated in the garden of the Horticultural Society of London''.
3rd Edition. Printed for the Society, by W. Nicol, Clevelend Row.

Other names

'Griotte de Kleparow' has many synonyms in botanical and pomological literature. Some of the synonyms include: * Череха клепарівська * ''Prunus caproniana'' Schübl. var. ''kleparoviensis'' Zaw. * Belle de Kleparow * Belle PolonaiseDochnahl, Friedrich Jakob. (1858
''Der sichere Führer in der Obstkunde auf botanisch-pomologischem Wege.''
Wilhelm Schmid, Nürnberg. * Bonne Polonaise * Cerise de Kleparow * Czerecha kleparowska * Griotte Kleparite * Kleparovka * Kleparovoska * Kleparower Süssweichsel * Kleparower Weichsel * Kleparower * KleparowskaTowarzystwo Popierania Polskiej Nauk Rolnictwa i Leśnictwa (1939)
''Roczniki nauk rolniczych''
Vol. 46, Państwowe Wydawn. Rosnicze i Leśne. * Pohlnische Weichsel * Polnische grosse Weichsel * Polnische Kirsche * Polnische Weichsel * Ratafia polonica

External links

Article and photo of 'Griotte de Kleparow' (Belle Polonaise) and other rare cherry cultivars.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Griotte De Kleparow Cherry cultivars Flora of Ukraine Sour cherries