Taxon ID:
Usage Facet: class=edible; edible_score=1.0; ornamental_score=0.0; inferred_from_taxon=no
Relationships: 0 | Linked Entities (visible): 0 | Evidence claims: 6 | History events: 0 | Catalog issue offerings: 0
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Evidence Badge: emerging | claims=6 | sources=1 | contradictions=0
Claim Types: anecdote_snippet:1, breeder_reference:1, recommendation_context:1, release_year_reference:1, taxon_context:1 | Open evidence summary JSON | Open citation drawer JSON
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Downing is most clearly documented here as Charles Downing, a Wildgoose group plum raised by H. A. Terry of Crescent, Iowa, from Wildgoose seed. The South Dakota bulletin says it first fruited in 1885 and rates it as one of the better Wildgoose plums, though better suited to areas south of the colder parts of South Dakota. [S1]
Its origin is stated directly: Terry raised it from Wildgoose seed, and the South Dakota station preserved it under the name Charles Downing. This places it in the older American plum and Wildgoose line of seedling selection for fruit quality and adaptation, rather than in a formal modern breeding program. [S1]
The hardiness record in this packet is weak. South Dakota notes say two trees planted in the old station orchard in 1888 winter-killed, and the same source says the variety should be grown farther south. [S1]
The other source presents a separate same-name conflict: Downing also appears there as a gooseberry. One passage calls Houghton and Downing the best gooseberries for general planting and says gooseberries are perfectly hardy without winter protection, while another says Downing is more upright in growth but is sometimes winter-killed. [S2] These gooseberry references do not fit the Charles Downing plum and are best treated as a same-name cultivar conflict, not as evidence about the plum. [S2]
Summary source basis
This summary currently draws chiefly from Plums in South Dakota, with 1 additional supporting sources linked below.
Featured source descriptions
“Gooseberries are easily grown and are perfectly hardy without winter protection.”
— [2]
“Sometimes winter-kills.”
— [2]
“Downing is one of the best varieties of the Wildgoose group but must be grown further south.”
— [1]
“Downing is best for general planting among the well-tested gooseberry varieties.”
— [2]
Direct parent cultivars
Parentage claim text
Derived or downstream cultivar links
Source-story quotations
Taxonomy context: No family-tree context surfaced yet.
Related cultivars mentioned in source context
Zone assertions are structured rows. Hardiness claim text appears in evidence claims and page-linked citations.
| Zone Min | Zone Max | Zone Text | Assertion Type | Outcome | Location | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No explicit zone assertion rows yet. | ||||||
No linked media assets.
| Document | Title/URL | Rights | Claims | Relationships | History Events | Pages | Snippets |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17 | Plums in South Dakota | unknown | 6 | 0 | 0 | p16 | Downing is one of the best varieties of the Wildgoose group but must be grown further south.; Two trees planted in the old Station orchard in 1888 winter-killed.; The first crop was in 1885.; From seed of Wildgoose. |
| Document | Page | Claim Type | Claim | Quote | Match |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17 | p16 | recommendation_context | Downing is one of the best varieties of the Wildgoose group but must be grown further south. | Downing (Charles Downing), Wildgoose. HISTORY.-Originated by H. A. Terry, Crescent, Iowa, from seed of Wildgoose. | page_block:0.90 |
| 17 | p16 | anecdote_snippet | Two trees planted in the old Station orchard in 1888 winter-killed. | Downing (Charles Downing), Wildgoose. HISTORY.-Originated by H. A. Terry, Crescent, Iowa, from seed of Wildgoose. | page_block:0.90 |
| 17 | p16 | release_year_reference | The first crop was in 1885. | Downing (Charles Downing), Wildgoose. HISTORY.-Originated by H. A. Terry, Crescent, Iowa, from seed of Wildgoose. | page_block:0.90 |
| 17 | p16 | entry_pedigree | From seed of Wildgoose. | Downing (Charles Downing), Wildgoose. HISTORY.-Originated by H. A. Terry, Crescent, Iowa, from seed of Wildgoose. | page_block:0.90 |
| 17 | p16 | breeder_reference | Originated by H. A. Terry of Crescent, Iowa. | Downing (Charles Downing), Wildgoose. HISTORY.-Originated by H. A. Terry, Crescent, Iowa, from seed of Wildgoose. | page_block:0.90 |
| 17 | p16 | taxon_context | Listed under Wildgoose. | Downing (Charles Downing), Wildgoose. HISTORY.-Originated by H. A. Terry, Crescent, Iowa, from seed of Wildgoose. | page_block:0.90 |
| Year | Nursery | Catalog Issue | Relation |
|---|---|---|---|
| No catalog issue offerings linked. | |||
| Relation | Type | ID | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| No linked entities at this filter level. | |||
| Type | Claim | Confidence |
|---|---|---|
| recommendation_context | Downing is one of the best varieties of the Wildgoose group but must be grown further south. | 0.95 |
| anecdote_snippet | Two trees planted in the old Station orchard in 1888 winter-killed. | 0.94 |
| release_year_reference | The first crop was in 1885. | 0.95 |
| entry_pedigree | From seed of Wildgoose. | 0.97 |
| breeder_reference | Originated by H. A. Terry of Crescent, Iowa. | 0.96 |
| taxon_context | Listed under Wildgoose. | 0.97 |
| ID | Type | Year | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| No history events. | |||