When to harvest Bartlett and Anjou pears

I have a nice crop of Bartlett and Anjou pears, but am not sure when to harvest them. Last year I picked them too early, and they never ripened. They are still hard on the trees, but have a nice size. Anyone have any suggestions on how to know when to harvest?

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Well, it ain’t easy! And I don’t have Bartlett nor Anjou. But as a rule I give the neck a little squeeze, and if it gives a little I heft the pear to the horizontal. If it comes right off in my hand I take it in.

Some pears ripen without chilling, and some pears get all the chilling they need outside before they are harvested. But a lot of pears will do well if they are chilled for a week or whatever and then taken out to soften somewhat before eating. And some will ripen fine on the tree, or can be picked a little hard and then softened up inside.

It’s always a “try it and see” situation. It helps to cut one open and see if the seeds have darkened, but aside from that I don’t know of any other suggestions.

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Thanks Mark. We will do some experimenting…

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