We also planted a nectarine seed and the tree grew up so large and strong, but again the fruits were tiny, green and bland. We used them to throw at each other :D We did however, have great success with a yellow peach tree, the fruits were plentiful, large, and very sweet. The new owners of the house decided to take it down though because the tree didn't stand very well, it needed a lot of staking, the root system wasn't very good. As long as you have the space though, they are extremely fun to watch grow and develop from seedling to tree never knowing what you will get. And you never know when you may be blessed with something really unique and desirable.

Ein Shemer goes from starchy tart to mushy blandness in about 30 seconds, and blossoms too late to pollinate anything; but yes, it's quite productive (seems to be an unwritten law that the worse quality an apple is, the more productive it is). If you like tart cooking apples, Bramley Seedling does will in low-chill, high heat climates and stays crisp and very, very tart with matching sweetness; they are always meant to be cooked. Granny Smith does OK also. The commercial varieties can be found at Stark Bros. Nursery, Cummins Nursery, Raintree Nursery, and Grandpa's Orchard. Trees of Antiquity will have most of the heirlooms, and Century Farm Orchards have all the Old Southern varieties. Ignore any of the chill-hour ratings any of these nurseries list with the apples; they are wrong. Buy the ones on the most vigorous rootstock; a hot climate has a stunting effect on growth. We prefer M111 here, even for espalier. Applenut

Don't really know as much about pear seeds although I have grown them and don't remember if I stratified them or not. I don't think I did, or if I did, it was only for a short time. If you wanted to improve your success at growing pomme seedlings your time would be much better vested in studying the prevention of damping off. This is a major issue with all seedlings but, I don't think any greater than that of the pomme. Warming mats (that are often recommended here) do indeed speed germination, but they also induce fungal activity something fierce. There is a wealth of information available online about this in applying fungicides as well as soil selection and environmental conditions. 1) Good soil (sterile seed starter stuff not needed but it is better). You can also pasteurize your own in the oven. I've not done this but probably should have. 2) DO NOT use the tiny seed starter trays (they do work ok, but they dry out so quickly) 3) Air circulation (this prevents damping off, but it obviously speeds drying too) 4) fungicide applications (sulfur.myclo and daconil are such good fungicides, but for whatever reason they do not function well at all in the prevention of damping off. There are ones available that do however. Read up. If you have some Captan around it reportedly works pretty well. Some use vinegar solutions which also probably do ok. As a side note; I think sulfur may actually work ok, but when I've applied it the symptoms were already there and likely the disease had likely already gone systemic. It "may" work...possibly well if applied early. Captan is almost certainly better though. 4) Sunlight (last but certainly not least). This is of paramount importance. It's energy is needed to drive the photosynthesis process necessary for growth. It also prevents fungal growth (how incredibly well it prevents it cannot be understated). This can be artificially provided, but I'd STRONGLY recommend against it. It is extraordinarily difficult (and expensive) to artificially provide the light needed for even a half dozen seedlings. Think about those pot growing documentaries you've likely seen on TV; same thing here. Advice here being wait until spring to grow your seedlings, further advice would be to start them outside in pots in a sunny area. NOW..for all the things I recommended against and said would be difficult...well they are, BUT they can be done. I've done it, but it's a PITA.

Passiflora/Passionflower. Probably maypop if it's wild.