Certainly on my list!
Lost my abate fetel fruits and one tree to fireblight. Have one more tree without fruit.
I noticed the mention of fireblight susceptibility in their description. Have you seen an estimate of chill hours?
Too late… i already buy the concorde pear tree… but i can graft scions later… 
Dave Wilson says "Hours Below 45°F " equates to chilling hours. For all the people who don’t understand here is more information Fruit Tree Chilling Requirement | Dave Wilson Nursery. Abate fetel are considered high chill by those in warm climates but they are grown in south Africa, Brasil, Italy and other warm locations. They are said to take 600 to 1000 chill hours. european-pear-varieties.pdf (538.8 KB)
More on abate fetel
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/278009182_226_Prohexadione-Ca_Growth_Regulation_and_Reduction_of_Fire_Blight_Incidence_in_Pears_cv_Abate_Fetel’
https://www.jdvandeventerkwekery.com/pears-abate-fetel
Many places used to have these documented as very low chill pears but I see nothing like that now. " The Abate Fetel was developed in Italy by a monk who must’ve been promoted to abbot – Abate. And yes this pear looks like an abbot’s hat." . Bringing this up because abate fetel is parthenocarpic so pollination may not be a factor in California. For those not familiar Parthenocarpic Pears
Clark,
So Abate Fetel does not need cross pollination. What was the reason for my AF tree full of flowers this spring to set only one fruit? Immature tree? It was planted in 2018.
so can anyone tell me the FB resistance of this variety? i saw someone mention death to FB?
California is such good climate for pears they store excessive carbohydrates in the roots. Normal areas are not that good for growing pears. Parthenocarpic pears such as abate fetel, Bartlett etc. set fruits in that climate even though they were never pollinated. The fruit will be seedless. In zone 6 climate parthenocarpy is unlikely.
@Seattlefigs
Yes it’s susceptible to fireblight but I’ve never seen it be the cause of fireblight. In my case meanie pear always gets the first fireblight strikes and then others catch it. I was very glad to see these near 100 degree temperatures because the fireblight let up. Meanie pear will need to be removed long term. The remaining abate fetel didn’t get strikes and it was not carrying fruit. I was growing to many susceptible varities. About 10 of those varities are now dead. Removed them before it got out of hand.
@Richard discussed hood in California which does very well there.
There are so many callery grown they pollinate hood. Hood Pear
do you know of any winter pears that are FB resistance?
Duchess D’ Angoulme is a late season pear that is very resistant to fireblight. It cannot compete with comice or anjou. Harrow sweet is about as good as you can get for a fall pear that’s super easy to grow.
If anyone is wondering Summer Pears are different from Winter Pears just by the time they ripen! For our purposes we were talking about european pears mostly. Asian pears are very popular but seperate Summer Pears And Winter Pears – What’s The Difference Between Winter And Summer Pears
Clark, we also grow them in France. (Close to Italy!). I decided to only grow fruit that is not plentiful in my markets. Abate Fetel are very large here. Most delicious pear I ever ate. Best for eating fresh!
I thought I had Duchess coming, but it has fallen through. If anyone has Duchess or Abbet scionwood they can still send, I’d be interested in a stick or two. Both sound worth trying out.
@clarkinks
Could you please post pics of your Abate Fetel flowers, a close up is appreciated.
My”Abate Fetel” bloomed later than other pears last year. It did not hold on to any fruit. Thus, I can’t say if my is true to label. If they set fruit, I would be able to tell easily.
Want to see flowers first in case mine does not set fruit again. My tree has a lot of blooms this year but they are at a tight cluster stage.
It is easIest to see the long fruitlets under the flower when they reach petal fall like mine are in this photo. Normal pears do not have that much length. The flowers themselves are unremarkable.
Mostly agree with this chart though Charles harris blooms slightly earlier than many here. Things bloom at slightly different times from one year to the next.
What does 19 on Abate Fetel mean?
Last year my AF blooms had more wrinkly petals than other pears. I will take pics when this year’s blooms open.
I will keep an eye on the fruitlets, too.
The way i’m reading the chart the numbers and the letters b,c,d, e are all date of blooms. Abbe fetel is a mid bloomer which is a 19. The numbers in the group represent how early the blooms open are in relation to the other blooms. We need the entire chart. As an example D is later than c but both are mid bloomers.
- spread of full flower
23 is E , E made no sense because it says early flowering but shows m-l
B are an early bloomer
C is a mid bloomer
14, 19, 20 are mid bloom
All 18s are letter D mid bloomer
L is late flowering
Thanks, Clark. How many varieties on the list that you grow?
I am surprised that Dax did not list Korean Giant and Drippin Honey but listed other Asian pears.
19 of the varities that i know of. Used to grow several more but have had a big fireblight problem in recent years.