I’m wondering if this is one of those years when fireblight is going to do a lot of damage. While driving home today I noticed several Callery’s with FB strikes. I have tried to be dilligent about my efforts to control it in my orchard but I have seen a few hits that look like what I think is blossom Blast. These are showing up mostly on an unknown Asian pear which I’m considering removing. I have grafted in several Pink Lady, Williams Pride, and Liberty. As of now these are clean. Sorry about your Grimes Golden which I’m guessing is a heavy bloomer this year.
I am convinced that FB is caused by such a genetically fluid organism that the strains you have in NC or GA will attack different varieties than the strain I have in Watsonville, CA. I have compared notes with many other growers (mostly in the west) that reinforces this opinion.
That being said, we mostly get it on pears and quince, although 2015 was our worst ever for FB on apples. So far there is no sign of it this year and we were just scouting for it this afternoon. Here are a few pear notes, although as I said, your location might be very different.
Very resistant:
Warren - our best pear although it can occasionally show a twig or two with infection, it never spreads into more of the tree. It has other issues though, such as very slow to bear and weak pollination.
Magness- perfect so far although only in sixth leaf and this is the first year with any fruit.
Blake’s Pride - our trees are fifth leaf and haven’t cropped yet but they had no FB in our horrible year of 2015.
Pretty Good:
Seckel - a few twigs get it but it never seems to get hammered. I have 20 years of experience with this one.
Harovin Sundown - we only have 2 trees but they have fruit in third leaf (!!! For a pear) and no FB.
Not Good:
We all know most of these: almost all Asian pears, Bartlett, d’anjou, etc.
I want to specially mention Harrow Delight here because it came so highly touted as resistant. We planted 5 trees in 2013 and lost 3 to FB in 2015. They had it worse than anything else. The other two trees, which were planted about 100 feet away from the others, survived 2015 and are thriving. Other people in our region have also had problems with this one.
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How is the flavor of Harovin Sundown AKA “Cold Snap”? I have searched and didn’t find too many opinions or descriptions of the flavor from people here.
I’m thinking about dropping Potomac (on OHxF 87) from my 2019 order and getting Cold Snap (on Pyro 2-33) after reading a few things about it. It’s said to be “highly aromatic” with peak flavor sometime in November after being picked in September and kept in cold storage, with it keeping good quality into early Spring. And like any Harrow pear, they’re both fireblight resistant.
To me, it seems like getting the Harrow Sweet to eat closer to harvest and a Cold Snap to eat mostly from around Christmastime on might be the best approach to ensure a long pear eating season from a two tree pear “orchard”.
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There is not to much data out there from the United States but the Canadians love it Hw623 & hw624 pears scheduled release in 2021. I’m a member of some other pear groups and hear very good things from the north.
Thanks, Clark. Hopefully the pears they release in 2021 are winners. I’ll just give ColdSnap a shot. Pears might be the easiest non-tropical fruit to get my kids to eat. They love the sweet, melting texture of a good pear. As do I.
Would Cummins give a refund for an order I already paid for? My wife rejected the 6 M.9-sized apple tree plan that I thought she’d have no problem with, but approved two M.111 sized trees. She must think the smaller trees would wind up being ugly and she’s probably right on that one. Got two Golden Delicious-related apples (GoldRush and Hoople’s) from Century Farm Orchard. Kidds is another one that interested me for the initial planting but the 1 to 2 month shelf life makes me want to get a stick down the road, rather than invest an entire M111 in it. If I get ColdSnap instead of Potomac it’d be just another item to add to my existing Adams order, since Adams is carrying ColdSnap on Pyro 2-33 which I understand results in a bit smaller of a tree than OHxF 87 and bears earlier.
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@Joe
This is cold snap as seen here (not my image) http://producemadesimple.ca/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Cold-Snap-Pears-4.jpg
I would contact cummins they are very nice. Think you might enjoy this article with recipes from https://www.thestar.com/
" By CYNTHIA DAVID Special to the Star
Wed., Nov. 23, 2016
Late fall usually is a sad time for local pear lovers as first Bartlett, then Bosc disappear from supermarket shelves, to be replaced by imports.
But until the end of January Ontario growers are proudly packing a new late-season variety in bright blue bags and clamshells with whimsical graphics.
Here’s to Cold Snap, the sweet, juicy pear with the pretty pink blush that aims to become Winter’s Favourite Fruit.
“It will probably take a couple of years to become a household name like Honeycrisp,” says Matthew Ecker, sales and business development manager at Vineland Growers Co-operative in Jordan Station, which grows and markets the fruit.
Though picked by late September with other local pears, Cold Snap’s firmer flesh stays fresh for several months in controlled storage.
Last year, our first, we had minimal volume,” Ecker says, “this year we’ll go to the end of January and we expect to increase our supply by about 50 per cent a year for the next few years, eventually going to February or March.”
This squat, roly-poly pear, the first bred in Canada, was released in 1972 under the name AC Harovin Sundown. As the first of 75,000 trees in Ontario and Nova Scotia came of age last year, growers searched for a catchier name. Cold Snap was born, with its own website, coldsnappear.ca.
As part of the branding process, Consumer Insights Research program leader Amy Bowen conducted pear focus groups at Niagara’s Vineland Research and Innovation Centre.
Consumers are particularly annoyed with pears that are rock-hard one day and mushy the next, Bowen says, a problem Cold Snap doesn’t have.
“People liked it because it’s less grainy than other pears with a crisp and juicy texture,” she says. “Sweet, lemony and floral flavours all come together to create a balanced taste and it retains its firmness.”
She says participants also loved the pear’s made-in-Canada story.
It’s sustainable
Cold Snap is not only proudly local, it’s grown using new techniques that produce lots of skinny Charlie Brown-like trees loaded with pears on far less land than the old sprawling trees. It’s also naturally resistant to fire blight, which has decimated many Ontario orchards. Cold Snap’s clamshells are made from recycled water bottles.
Buy & Store
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Look for 2-pound (1 kg) bags or clamshells of Cold Snaps in retail stores until late January.
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If you like firm pears, refrigerate immediately. Or leave on the counter for two to three days to soften slightly.
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Bright yellow skin indicates optimal flavour. Unlike its Bartlett cousin, Cold Snap remains firm even when ripe.
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Don’t store near aromatic foods such as onions.
Prep
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Handle fibre-rich pears with care to avoid bruising.
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Rinse under cool running water and serve. Peel and core just before using.
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Cold Snap is pear-fect for poaching, roasting, grilling or baking.
Serve
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Try a pear-cranberry crisp or a pear-parsnip soup.
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Think preserves, dumplings and sorbet.
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Slice and serve raw with a plate of creamy cheeses or toss in a salad, leaving on the pretty yellow skin.
Hazelnut Pear Cake
Poached Cold Snaps shine in this light and lovely gluten-free cake from Foodland Ontario. Serve with whipped cream, if desired, or with caramel or rum sauce.
4-1/2 cups (1.125 L) water
2-3/4 cups (675 mL) granulated sugar
1 tsp (5 mL) lemon zest
1/4 cup (50 mL) fresh lemon juice
1-1/2 tsp (7 mL) vanilla
5 small Cold Snap pears, peeled, cored and halved
2 cups (500 mL) ground hazelnuts
2 tbsp (30 mL) cornstarch
6 large eggs, separated
1/4 tsp (1 mL) cream of tartar
Garnish: icing sugar
In large saucepan, combine water, 1-1/2 cups (375 mL) of the sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice and 1/2 tsp (2 mL) vanilla. Stir over medium-high heat until sugar dissolves. Add pears; bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until pears are just tender, turning occasionally, about 10 minutes. Let cool in syrup. (Prepare up to 1 day ahead, cover and refrigerate.)
Drain pears well, reserving syrup for another use. In medium bowl combine hazelnuts, 1 cup (250 mL) of the remaining sugar and cornstarch; set aside.
Grease and flour (regular or gluten free) a 10-inch (3 L) springform pan. Set aside.
In large bowl, beat egg yolks until frothy. Stir in remaining 1 tsp (5 mL) vanilla and hazelnut mixture until well combined; set aside.
With clean beaters, beat egg whites until frothy. Add cream of tartar and beat to soft peaks. Beat in remaining 1/4 cup (50 mL) sugar until peaks are stiff. Stir one-third of whites into egg yolk mixture and combine well. Gently fold in remaining whites. Pour into prepared pan.
Place one pear half, cut-side down, in the centre of batter and arrange remaining halves in a circle around it, stem toward centre, leaving a 1-inch (2.5 cm) border. Bake in 350°F (180°C) oven 1 hour and 15 minutes or until golden brown and cake part no longer looks wet. Cool on rack for 15 minutes. Run sharp knife around edge of pan. Remove side and use a metal spatula to remove bottom; cool cake completely on rack.
To serve, dust with icing sugar from a small sieve.
Makes 10 servings.
Cynthia David is a Toronto-based food and travel writer who blogs at cynthia-david.com"
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Now I really want to hear some opinions of people here who have tried it. I’m assuming it’s not crunchy like an Asian pear, but do you sacrifice the melting flesh of a typical European pear for the longer shelf life? I didn’t notice firmness when ripe mentioned in the other publications I have read about this pear.
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Check out the facebook page for the latest @Joe Cold Snap - Food & Beverage Company - Niagara, Ontario - 17 Photos | Facebook
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Thanks, I sent them an email asking about that.
Thinking about it now, maybe the ripe pear has just a little bit of give like a Comice rather than getting to be as soft as the Bartlett. Either way, I’m sure they’ll let me know.
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Here’s the reply:
Hello Joseph. Thanks for your interest in this pear. The Cold Snap pear is a delicious, juicy pear if ripened. One of the things we found with this pear is that it needs to be “conditioned” after harvest. That can be done by letting it sit in a cold storage room at 33 F degrees for up to six weeks before sending to retail. It does have great qualities and we are still learning more each year. Compared to a Bartlett, it is better tasting, more juice under ripe conditions, but will have surface scuffing if moved around when it is ripe.
In the USA, the rights to this pear are with Brandt’s Fruit Trees, a company in the west. Their info can be found atwww.brandtsfruittrees.com
I hope we have helped you a little. Let me know if we could assist with more answers to your questions.
Brandt’s Fruit Trees doesn’t list Cold Snap among the varieties they offer on the web site, yet.
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Storing at 6 weeks at 33 degrees is a no brainer for me. I cannot use this pear then. I have no where to put pears for 6 weeks at a 33 degree temperature. This sounds more like a commercial pear rather than a home orchard pear. How many fridges can you have packed into your house for all these storage type apple and pears to ripen correctly? Not me.
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For me, it’s an excuse to get this. I’ll try to obtain a cheap/free freezer off Craigslist from a person who is moving or something and then use it to store apples and pears in the fall, and use the same freezer to lager beer in the summer!
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It says “up to” 6 weeks.