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nafex - Re: [NAFEX] Medlars, was Re: what's compatible with pear?

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  • From: Hans Brinkmann <hans-brinkmann@t-online.de>
  • To: North American Fruit Explorers <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [NAFEX] Medlars, was Re: what's compatible with pear?
  • Date: Sat, 13 Jan 2007 15:19:05 +0100


Hallo Donna,
only a very few people will like medlars for their taste only, but many people will like medlars also for their
history (at Babylon it was traded already), ornamental character because of the very large and attractive
flowers..., interesting fruits (Hunds-ärschle = Dog's-backside), and late dropping of the fruits.
Regular at winter times, up to the variety.
People say (in Europe) some medlars have a better taste, when grafted onto pear instead of Crataegus.
But they live longer onto Crataegus. In Central Europe we have approx. 15 varieties.
Anyhow, medlars are - even in Europe - not very known and planted usually only from collectors.
ciao
hans Germany

dwoodard@becon.org schrieb:
Medlars when properly bletted are *delicious*. The flesh goes soft and brown, turning to something like a spicy super-applesauce.

The classical method is to put them in trays on straw, not touching if I recall rightly, in an unheated (English) building. I only did it once, by accident. I had put some seedling medlars in the freezer compartment of a very feeble refrigerator, hoping to plant the seeds (never did get around to that). A few months later (February? it was 28 or 29 years ago) they were exquisite. If the fruit of seedling trees (planted as ornamentals
at Vineland station) were that good, the fruit of selected cultivars
might be something pretty special.

I surmise that keeping them just above freezing might be best. It might be good to experiment with different cool temperatures.

I have not read anything about when they should be picked. Again, I would be inclined to try several picking dates and try a batch picked as late as possible. My guess is that that might have been the method of medieval and Renaissance times when medlars were popular.

I have a notion that they were a treat for the rural well-to-do (including maybe senior monks and nuns) involving a fair amount of labour and storage space to get just right.

A Greek immigrant barber I talked to about 25 years ago (in his forties
at the time I think) told me that they were grown in Greece when he
was young. I'm not sure, but I think he may have said that they were
picked late and were soon ready to eat there. I may be congfusing what he told me about medlars with what he told me about quinces though.

Doug Woodard
St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada



On Fri, 12 Jan 2007, Donna &/or Kieran wrote:

Hmmm... I'd just as soon skip the medlars, though it's true they
seem to do fine here. I've just never figured out what they are
good for.

Donna
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