North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

[dwoodard@becon.org]

I have a vague memory of reading that Bierschmidt pear is one that
will ripen well on the tree, but I'm not sure.

In general, ripening best off the tree is a feature of Pyrus communis, 
European pear, and if you are going to grow this species you might
as well get used to it.

Apparently in general the range for best ripening is 50 to 70 degrees 
Fahrenheit with best flavour but slower ripening at the lower
temperature. However some pears object to temperatures around 50 degrees 
and their minimum is 55 or 60 degrees - don't ask me which.

The requirement for refrigeration temeratures for best ripening is 
apparently not uniform for all cultivars. Anjou is an example of
one that does have this requirement

A container that holds the ethylene in is helpful for ripening.
A crock in a cool but not too cool cellar makes an excellent container.

The old books from the days of widespread home orchards discuss "season" 
which is generally season of *use* assuming "common" or root-cellar type 
storage. The season they mention for a given pear would usually assume 
root cellar storage, and might be helpful for you, assuming that that is 
what you are going to use.

Doug Woodard
St. Catharines, Ontario



On Sun, 18 Mar 2007, William C. Garthright wrote:

> > I really like the sweetness and the crispiness of the Seckel pear
>
> Am I correct that you can let the Seckel pear ripen on the tree? I've
> heard that somewhere. Are there any other pears like that (other than
> Asian pears)? I just don't like the idea of picking them green and
> ripening them indoors. Seems like I might as well buy them in the
> grocery store if I'm going to do that.
>
> Bill
> Lincoln, NE (zone 5a)
>
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