Unlike most fruits, pears are picked at the “mature” not ripe stage. You see, pears ripen from the inside out, so when they are perfectly ripe on the outside to the touch, they are usually rotten at the core. Tricky. Instead, pears are picked when they are still hard on the tree. So how is a pear lover to know when they are ready?
There are a few signs:
- If you can lift a pear horizontal to the branch, and the stem naturally snaps, it is ready to pick
- If you see some ripe pears fallen to the ground, that is a good sign at least some of the fruit is ready to pick
- Some peas will develop a rosy or red blush on at least one side when they are ready to pick
If none of that is scientific enough for you, you can buy a tool called a penetrometer. No I did not make that up. It measures the surface pressure of the fruit and gives you a scale by which to determine if the fruit is ripe. I have one, but I never use it.
Once mature pears are picked, they then must be kept at a cool temperature, the inside of your refrigerator is great, for a week or two. Then, finally, the pears can be brought to room temperature, and should have perfectly ripened flesh throughout the fruit. I am picking the earliest two pear varieties from my orchard this week. Harrow’s Delight is the first to mature, followed a week or two later by the old Bartletts that were here when we moved in.
Summer Pruning Apricots - Do it Now!
And give the peaches and plums a haircut too if you have the time.
Apricots are super susceptible to fungal infections which surge in the winter. So the best time to prune them is after they fruit but before the end of August. This let’s any cuts heal up before the winter rains begin and spread this dratted fungal spores.
I am thinking of holding some summer and winter pruning workshops. Would anyone be interested? Let me know!