Need help with pear varieties

General Fruit Growing
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Hi everyone,

I’ve been collecting fruit trees for a few years now and really would like a Bartlett type pear tree in my collection. I have Red Bartlett, but the tree was weak when I bought it and I’m not sure what it’s going to grow like this season. Deer browsed the branch tips and it just has never performed well. The tree is probably on fifth leaf or so at this point. Anyway, I can’t seem to find Bartlett anywhere in the local nurseries around me. I know I can order it online somewhere, but wanted to ask first what others think of growing Bartlett or Red Bartlett?

I also have a brand new Ayers, D’Anjou(which I’ve found i don’t care for eating, at least not from the grocery), Seckel, Comice, and Moonglow.

Are either Comice or Moonglow like Bartlett? I really love the fragrant qualities, soft flesh, and hint of tartness in Bartlett. I read everywhere that so many people hate on Bartlett and that there are so many better options, so I just wanted to collect some opinions on what I might be better off searching for. Thanks.

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Harrow sweet is much smaller unless you aggressively thin the pears but it tastes like an improved bartlett. I think that should be the next pear tree you choose. Those you mentioned will not taste like bartlett. Tastes are individual and if bartlett tastes best to you the harrow sweet would be my preferred bartlett like pear and you wont be dissapointed.

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Clark I know you like the Ayers pear a lot. How does this one compare? I bought Ayers on a whim after perusing through some of your old posts about it.
The tree I got is on Calleryana rootstock, so I think it will be many years before I even have a taste. I will have to wrangle this tree every year to keep it in check in the space it’s planted.

I have not tried many pears admittedly. I like Bartlett the best, I have tried Bosc, D’Anjou (red and green,) and Concorde.

Anjou just has this weird pulpy texture I don’t like, dead ripe or less so, either way I do not like it.

Bosc seems pretty good albeit kind of forgettable. Sweet, somewhat floral, but mostly boring. I don’t like the skin either.

Concorde was pretty good, rather juicy, but had a musky undertone I didn’t love either.

I have a hard time describing exactly what I like about Bartlett, and as I mentioned have just kind of been whimsically getting other trees hoping I will enjoy the fruit. Seems a bit silly I suppose in hindsight.

Do you like growing mostly pears and apples, or do you dabble with stone fruits also?

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I am a fan of Bartlett also; it is big, has a very good melting taste, turns yellow upon ripening (making it easier), easy to grow, and can set fruit by itself, early-ish also. It’s downside is it is not very resistant to fire blight if that is a problem for you.

Bartlett has many offspring: the entire Harrow series of pears are majority Bartlett (e.g., Harrow Sweet, Harrow Delight, Harvest Queen, etc) as are other good pears with 50% Bartlett:
Beirschmitt, Sheldon, Sirrine, Gorham, Grand Champion, Highland, Packham’s Triumph, Paragon, Doyenne Gris, etc. There are a bazillion.

The only difference between Red Bartlett and Bartlett is the color.

And if you like, you can have Bartlett descendant early (like Clapp Favorite, Harrow Delight), then Bartlett itself, then a Bartlett offspring a little later mid-season (Harrow Sweet, Paragon, Gorham) and then have a late season Bartlett offspring (Packham’s Triumph, Winkleman, Doyenne Gris)

Moonglow is a pear whose chief quality is as a pollenizer and seems nowadays obsolete: Potomac is much better tasting and has the same if not better FB resistance (Potomac is a daughter of Moonglow with Anjou) and avoids the astringency sometimes Moonglow has and when to pick Moonglow is also not easy (there seems to be a lot of frustration on this forum about Moonglow)

I didn’t like Anjou initially but I do now if it is super ripe (over ripe and very soft); I prefer softer pears and Anjou is more firm but will becomes softer if very very ripe.

I agree with Clark - Harrow Sweet is a Bartlett pear with better fire blight resistance and would be a good one to add; Beierschmitt also, as well as Gorham (or its sport Grand Champion/Shannon) and for later season Packham’s Triumph; you can add Clapp’s red (Kalle) or Harrow Delight if you wanted a Bartlett-type pear before Bartlett itself.

harrow sweet
harrow sweet783×446 290 KB

from the harrow sweet paper, it has a little less grit and a little more juicy, and it is a little later after bartlett in ripening ~3 weeks later

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I would get some deer protection. They’re not going to stop eating the new growth until it’s too high for them to reach. And then they’ll probably gore the tree with their antlers because deer don’t live off plant matter that non-stupid organisms realize isn’t food, they feed off human suffering.

At least around here, where nobody should be planting Bartlett because fire blight is going to kill it, all the big box stores have tons of trees in stock right now.

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You can probably pick up a Bartlett at Home Depot or other retailers that stock trees in spring. I personally would not because Bartlett is decimated by fire blight in my southern climate.

Personal preference in order would be Bell, Harrow Sweet, Potomac, and Red Clapp’s (aka Kalle, not fireblight tolerant!)

Ayers is a very fast grower on a good rootstock. I grafted on a callery rootstock last spring and got over 8 feet of new growth in one growing season.

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There are 2 Bartlett pears on the Curator’s Choice pear list from Joseph Postman (his favorites from the 2,300 pears at Corvallis, OR)

aurora
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Aurora is 75% Bartlett (parent and grandparent)

nye russet
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Like Red Bartlett, it is 100% Bartlett, but is russet colored and ripens a week later

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Yes the deer don’t seem to have much empathy for our hard work. A fence will be in the works shortly.

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Thank you for the comprehensive data. I will look into some of these varieties. Perhaps I can get some scionwood.

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@RosesAndApples

Im a fan of ayers but its dripping and juicy but not a thing like bartlett

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OP, if you’re in colder clime’s what you want is Julienne pear. Can be had in canada but have to look. Grew them when lived in Alberta. They’re zone 3 hardy and will take in my experience a full 7 years to produce.
Fruit are a bartlett in every single way, but 60% of the size. If you were to take a properly ripe bartlett and a properly ripe julienne and cube them so the size difference couldn’t be detected I defy anyone to tell the difference.

Moved here to SK 8 yrs ago and kicking myself for not planting some. Note they are self pollinating, but that being said I had 2 in AB.

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