Black Republican cherry

The Black Republican cherry is a cultivar of cherry. While it is a hybrid, its parentage is not known; it is possibly a cross of the Napoleon and Black Tartarian cultivars, but has also been described as a seedling of the Eagle variety. One of the parents of the Bing cherry, the Black Republican was first grown in Oregon about 1860 by the horticulturist Seth Lewelling, who gave it its name as a reflection of his Abolitionist beliefs.[1]

Black Republican cherry
Image of Black Republican cherries, from the USDA Pomological Watercolor Collection
GenusPrunus
SpeciesPrunus avium
Cultivar'Black Republican'
BreederSeth Lewelling
OriginOregon, ca. 1860

The fruit of the Black Republican is small, firm, and deep purple in color, with an intense taste well-suited to preserving. It was a very important commercial cherry in the Pacific Northwest, but already by the early 20th century was being surpassed by the Bing cherry.[2] Today it is a rare variety, with about 200 acres in production, and is listed as an endangered heritage food in the Ark of Taste.[3]

References
  1. "Prunus Cultivar: Black Republican". UC Davis College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. The Regents of the University of California, Davis campus. Retrieved March 28, 2020.
  2. "Biennial Report of the Board of Horticulture of the State of Oregon, 1905" pg. 106
  3. "The Ark of Taste". Slow Food Foundation for Biodiversity. Archived from the original on April 16, 2011. Retrieved March 28, 2020.
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