The Woodcock was one of the oldest described

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

varieties of

cider apple Cider apples are a group of apple cultivars grown for their use in the production of cider (referred to as "hard cider" in the United States). Cider apples are distinguished from "cookers" and "eaters", or dessert apples, by their bitterness or ...

. It originated in the West of England in the counties of

Herefordshire Herefordshire () is a county in the West Midlands of England, governed by Herefordshire Council. It is bordered by Shropshire to the north, Worcestershire to the east, Gloucestershire to the south-east, and the Welsh counties of Monmouthsh ...

and

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of Gl ...

Description

Hogg described the apple as medium-sized, oval, with a distinctive fleshy, curved stalk of about three-quarters of an inch in length: the skin was yellow with a soft red flush, deeper on the sunward side.Hogg, R. ''The Apple and its varieties'', p.210 The tree itself was large and vigorous, forming large branches in the manner of a

pear Pears are fruits produced and consumed around the world, growing on a tree and harvested in the Northern Hemisphere in late summer into October. The pear tree and shrub are a species of genus ''Pyrus'' , in the family Rosaceae, bearing the po ...

tree.Marshall, W. ''The rural economy of Gloucestershire'', v2, 1789, p. 255 The varieties' name was popularly supposed to refer to the stalk's resemblance to the head of a

woodcock The woodcocks are a group of seven or eight very similar living species of wading birds in the genus ''Scolopax''. The genus name is Latin for a snipe or woodcock, and until around 1800 was used to refer to a variety of waders. The English name ...

; but

Thomas Andrew Knight Thomas Andrew Knight (1759–1838), FRS, of Elton Hall in the parish of Elton in Herefordshire (4 miles south-west of Ludlow) and later of Downton Castle (3 miles north-west of Elton), was a British horticulturalist and botanist. He served a ...

, who described and illustrated the apple in his ''Pomona Herefordiensis'', surmised that its name was originally that of the person who first raised the variety. In

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

the Woodcock was known as ''afal coes y dryw'' or ''afal coeshir y gwin'', both names referring to the fruit's distinctive stem.Pughe, ''A dictionary of the Welsh language'', 1866, p.45

History

The Woodcock was noted by writers as far back as the 17th century, making it one of the earliest described varieties.

John Evelyn John Evelyn (31 October 162027 February 1706) was an English writer, landowner, gardener, courtier and minor government official, who is now best known as a diarist. He was a founding Fellow of the Royal Society. John Evelyn's diary, or ...

described it as one of the principal "''Gloucestershire cider-fruit''" in his work '' Sylva''.Evelyn, ''Sylva'', 1670, p.64

John Philips John Philips (30 December 1676 – 15 February 1709) was an 18th-century English poet. Early life and education Philips was born at Bampton, Oxfordshire, the son of Rev. Stephen Philips, later archdeacon of Salop, and his wife Mary Wood. ...

, in Book 2 of his poem ''Cyder'' (1708), described how juice of the Woodcock was blended with that of other apples to create "''a pleasurable Medly''". By the 19th century the variety was said to be in decline and little planted.Lindley, G. ''A Guide to the Orchard and Kitchen Garden'', 1830, p.83 The Somerset grower John Scott (1807–86) noted that it was still in existence in the late 19th century, describing it as a "''beautiful light red apple''".Scott, J. ''Scott's Orchardist'', 1873, p.118 The variety is now thought to be lost, though a correspondent to

The Gardeners' Chronicle ''The Gardeners' Chronicle'' was a British horticulture periodical. It lasted as a title in its own right for nearly 150 years and is still extant as part of the magazine '' Horticulture Week''. History Founded in 1841 by the horticulturists Jose ...

, writing in 1932, stated that after "''long hunting and enquiry about the orchards''" they thought that the Monmouthshire variety "Frederick" was closely related or identical to the old Woodcock.''Gardeners Chronicle'', v 92 (1932), 471

References

{{Apples Apple cultivars British apples