This is my first harvest of European pears after 10 years of trying! YYY!
My Warren Pear* is loaded with fruit.
The first pear fell off today.
It was hard but attractive to ants.
I’ve read that European pears need to be picked** then held in cold storage to ripen.
Would someone experienced fill me in?
I’m trying to wean off of Harry & David
TIA
*planted 2017 from Raintree Nursery, grown in a 15 gal. pot under thrip net
**I’m in Zone 7A - high temperatures are still +80F - no idea when Fall weather will arrive.
Hey there,
I also have a Warren pear, but it’s not ripening yet. Congratulations on your fruit!
There was a helpful post a couple weeks back, not sure if you looked at it yet.
Thanks kdegs - I did read that one. Clarkinks is great!
I don’t think my pears are ripening yet - just had one fall off. I’ve been getting unripe fruit dropping off the peaches, plums and apples. It’s been a tough year on them between fireblight, a scorching summer, and two-spot mites. Hope to do better for them next year. It’s a learning curve.
Let me know how your pears come along.
Sounds like it might be related to some Seckel pear, so it might be okay for the fruit to stay on the tree until they fall off. I am not sure how other people store pears in the fridge, yet I used a brown paper bag closed with clothing pins. In a week or two of it being in the fridge the variety I put in the fridge should be ready. Not sure if Warren takes the same amount of fridge time.
Sure that sounds perfect. Warren turns out good for me no matter what. Let us know how they turn out. Here in Kansas we have ideal pear growing conditions with high heat in the summer ripening the pears sugar sweet. In the fall we get very cold temps at times which further concentrates sugar. Growing conditions are the most important thing. If you want to try some other really good ripening methods check here. Warren Pear
The tilt test let me down this summer on my Auroras. I think they snap off too easily. I was so sure they were ripe that I picked them all, but the seeds are nowhere near brown and a month in the fridge has not helped.
So, usually the tilt test works, but not always. I am more relying on the hornets now, the few bug-eaten varieties ripening on the early side will attract the hornets, and that is a clue the rest are close or there.
Yes @scottsmith i agree completely. Insects tell us a lot. The tilt test does typically work but fruit dropping, insects, pushing on the neck of the pear for give, color, smell, etc. are all great indicators as well.
Dang, hornet test isn’t going to work for me until the next hurricane threatens and I have to take down the bug screen. Maybe I’m good since my first pear fell and the ants got it. @clarkinks Glad to hear they’ll likely ripen no matter what I do.
- just had one fall off. I’ve been getting unripe fruit dropping off the peaches, plums and apples. It’s been a tough year on them between fireblight, a scorching summer, and two-spot mites. Hope to do better for them next year. It’s a learning curve.