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Fruit & Orchards

Why are my Asian pears cracking?

9 years ago

I have a 'Shinko' Asian pear tree on Betulifolia rootstock. Last year I lost all the pears to cracking. this year, just a few have cracked, but I'm worried the rest will follow. The pears look fine otherwise. I have a Seckel European pear that gets scab, which makes the fruit crack, but those fruit are covered with the fungus. I don't see any such thing on the Asian pears. Rain has been good this year, so I don't think it's related to drought stress. Any ideas?

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Comments (5)

fruitnut Z7 4500ft SW TX
9 years ago
Yes they crack because they swell up with too much water. I've taken out a couple varieties that were especially prone to split. Other than that you could try to keep an even water level. But here it's just a big rain and they can split.
alan haigh
9 years ago
FN is correct and if you are getting the rain I'm getting it's been a lot, although I've not seen any cracking on the varieties of A. pears I'm managing. I suspect the smooth and thin skinned 20th century would be susceptible, but you may also be getting longer wet periods than we are. Or your tree might not be in full sun, which makes cracking worse.

Graft a couple other varieties on the tree and enjoy a wider span of harvest, more variety and maybe less susceptibility to cracking. I suggest Korean Giant for your area.
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Tony
9 years ago
Alex

We get lots of rain here every spring and my 20th Century Asian pear cracked every year. I top worked it into another Tennosui. Tennosui is 3 times better tasting than the 20th Century and doesn't turn brown after cutting open.

Tony
alexander3_gw
Original Author
9 years ago
Thanks for the input!

I'm curious why less than full sun makes cracking worse?

I have started grafting other varieties onto the tree.
alan haigh
9 years ago
the longer the water sits on the skin the more is absorbed into the fruit

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