As @alan mentioned in another post, this year looks like a bumper crop in New York probably because we had none last year.
On top of that, practically all of my pears ( most being in their 4th-5th leaf) have decided that this year they were going to finally put on fruit. So I have clusters all over them.
You know what they say about “being careful of what you wish for” , well…
So the question is. HOW DO YOU THIN PEARS?. OR DO YOU? I’ve seen photos like the one below and read articles that say that Euro pears don’t need to be thinned. Some say that they should be thinned.
Apparently they are definitely thinned differently than apples or peaches/nectarines.
I thin pears a lot, but commercial growers sometimes don’t do enough because it all has to be done by hand. Same deal as other fruit- large pears should be thinned to at least 8" apart or about 30 leaver per fruit.
I think in the West they must thin Seckels because the ones from Oregon, or wherever, are as big as mine. Here, I’ve seen commercial growers selling tiny Seckels, but it is a pear that can over-crop and still get high sugar. There is nevertheless a drop in quality.
Since my aim is for quality over quantity I will be a happy thinner. (I’d also be happy if I could figure out how to become a thinner thinner in addition to being a happy thinner )
)