Greengage blossom with visiting fly

The very first blossom on a "Reine Claude de Bavay" greengage tree planted two years ago.

In France ""reine-claude" is the generic name for greengages. The French king François I imported the greengage to France from Italy and named it after Claude, his first wife, who had died at the age of 25.

François I was a contemporary of England's Henry VIII; one of the ladies of queen Claude's court was the young Anne Boleyn.


"Green Gages" were imported into England from France in 1724 by Sir William Gage, hence their name used in English-speaking countries.


UPDATE (11 April)
I have today posted a differently treated version of this photo, as I wasn't too happy with the original - the enlarged version remains the original, however!