Elliot (CPYR 2624).-Originated at University of California, Davis, by Kay Ryugo; released in 1988. Elliot #4 x Vermont Beauty; cross made in 1964. Plant patent 6452; 6 Dec. 1988. Fruit: 50 to 60 mm in diam.; shape pyriform to conical, similar to Comice; skin yellow-green, 50% russeted. Buttery texture; flavor similar to Bosc; soluble solids to 18%. Ripens 2 to 4 weeks after Bartlett; stores 16 weeks at 0 C. Tree: upright habit; no fire blight during 20 years of observation, apparently resistant. -- Brooks and Olmo Register of Fruit and Nut Varieties.Elliot is resistant, but not immune, to fire blight. Fruit has the shape and coloration similar to 'Doyenne du Comice' and 'Tyson' . Origin: 'Elliot' is a hybrid between 'Vermont Beauty' and 'Elliot #4'. 'Elliot #4' was discovered in the 1930s by H.E. Thomas, Plant Pathologist, Dept. of Plant Pathology, Univ. of California at Berkeley on the Elliot Ranch, located in the Sacramento River Delta district. It arose as a sucker from a rootstock of an old 'Bartlett' tree. Because rootstocks of such old trees were derived from seeds imported from France before World War 1, the stock was probably a seedling of Pyrus communis. Thomas inoculated branches of 'Elliot #4' with bacterial suspensions of E. amylovora, but the bacteria did not spread. Crosses of 'Elliot #4' x 'Vermont Beauty' and 'Bartlett' x 'Elliot #4' were made in 1964 on the Univ. of California, Davis campus. No effort was made to control fire blight. Evaluations made in 1977 and 1978 revealed that several offspring from the 'Elliot #4' x 'Vermont Beauty' did not become infected, although they had not been sprayed with an antibiotic during the 20 years of observation. Other seedlings from the same cross became diseased to varying degrees (Ryugo, 1982). All offspring of 'Bartlett' x 'Elliot #4' exhibited light to severe symptoms of fire blight in 1977 or 1978 and were discarded. 'Elliot' fruit matures 2 to 4 weeks after 'Bartlett' and stores well up to 4 months at 0 C and 80% RH. Fruit has a buttery texture and a flavor like 'Beurre Bosc'. The rich-bodied juice will attain a soluble solids content of 18%. Harvest size ranges from 50 to 60 mm in diameter; shape varies from pyriform to conical. Skin is yellowish green; surface color is brownish yellow, with 50% russet, similar to 'Beurre Bosc'. Fruits exposed to the sun develop a red blush that tends to fade as the fruit matures. Untested for winter hardiness, but, because 'Vermont Beauty' is cold-hardy, 'Elliot' is expected to be equally cold-tolerant. Blooms with Bartlett. Will cross-pollinate with 'Winter Nelis'. The pedicels are thin, so that in windy areas, the weight of the fruit may cause them to break, resulting in a preharvest drop. Leaf shapes vary from ovate to elliptical. No evidence of biennial bearing. -- Acta Hort. 124:33-36.