I picked this pear this morning and it appears to be about ripe. Big, stem lifted easy, Sweet enough.
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That is a good looking pear @Auburn.
Hopefully I see some like that in a few years. I remember getting sccion from you to start my kiefer and improved kiefer trees.
They are in year 3 now… no blossoms yet. Hoping for next year.
I have added Bell, Potomac, Warren and Karls Favorite to them by graft.
We normally store kiefer pears in the basement for a week or so… and they yellow up some, soften up some and sweeten up some too.
TNHunter
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My kieffer pears came off very easy but they are hard as a rock. I threw them in a fridge. Should I wait for them to soften before eating? How long should I leave them in the fridge for?
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I have never tried storing them in the fridge… we collected 5 gal buckets full… and stored them in the basement and checked them after a week, every few days… until they started to soften just a little and turn yellow.
They were ideal for making pear preserves like that… and definately good for fresh eating.
TNHunter
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My guess is it will ripen in 2-4 weeks inside. They can take a good long while from tree ripe to actually being ripe. That one looks like kieffer. Improved kieffer normally gets frosts rings on the bottom of the pear. Kieffer has a slightly more elongated bottom. The names are used synonymous because one is frequently sold as the other or vice verca. The taste is similar but a kieffer like yours. Has a slightly less acidic flavor.
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I’m in zone 7a-b and my Kieffer still looks very green. Google indicates that it’s ripe when you lift the fruit up and it breaks off at the stem, and it should be ready in Sept-Oct for zone 7. So to be clear, am I suppose to store it in a cool location after picking until it turns yellow and soft?
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I picked the pear and ate it the same day. My taste is different from most people. It would probably get softer and sweeter if you waited a few days to eat. The texture at this stage was similar to Orient. My Orient was a little sweeter. The leather like peel seems to get less insect damage.
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Not sure where to post this. Will a week or two in fridge improve any pear? Trying to give friends a simple way to handle pears I give them vs each variety different curing treatment.
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Pear preserves… oh man so good.
We have a apple peeler/corer/slicer device (pampered chef) that works great on kiefer pears… as long as your pears are still a little firm. If they get too soft…it does not work well… better off doing all that by hand.
The kiefer pears we harvested from would start dropping fruit… but they were still mostly hard and green like Auburns pic above. We would pick 5 gal buckets full and just sit them in the basement… and wait until they first started to show yellow color and soften up a bit.
They made awesome pear preserves. We give them to family at Christmas… everyone loves them.
TNHunter
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Its huge! Name please?
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I think that it is the original Kieffer.
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No. Some pears are best off the tree and some take longer than 2 weeks for best flavor. Entirely depends on the variety
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Thank you!
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My notes say can eat Magness and Warren right off tree but both can store a long time. So storage would not hurt them, right?
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Looks like an original Kieffer to me. I had one at my older house. These are great pears. Like others have said- store them for a while ( at times a few weeks to a a month or so) and when they get a little softer you can enjoy them with eating or using them for preserves.
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