I thought I would mention one of the unusual ones here, just because I noticed that some you are in Southern California. (Disclaimer: If you're located in a different part of the country where disease is a big problem, you can stop reading now, you'll be wasting your time because this variety isn't going to grow where you live) I read that Comice is supposedly more adaptable to lower-chill conditions than many other European pear varieties (though this is debatable, Gary Matsuoka of Laguna Hills Nursery stated he had only ever seen 1 crop in 25 years). Assuming this is true, it would not be surprising. After lots of research done in another thread ( Any Pear or Apple varieties with an aroma like Quince? ) I have come to the suspicion that some European pear varieties may in fact have a quince ancestor. If you know anything about quince (Cydonia Oblonga), it is hard yellow fruit related to pear and apple, with a wonderful very fragrant aroma, but usually too hard, dense, and astringent to eat raw, so they are usually used in cooking. Quince is generally considered a lower-chill fruit than pear or apple, and was traditionally grown around the Mediterranean. Anyway, I believe it is the quince ancestor that gives some of these French pears their exquisite flavor, but these same pear varieties also tend to be a little bit hard, firm, and dense (perhaps a little like the fruit of a quince). The French pear passé crassane, in fact, is actually claimed to have resulted from a cross between quince and pear (1885 by nurseryman Louis Boisbunel in the Rouen region). This hybridization has made this pear parthenocarpic, meaning it can produce fruit that does not contain seeds, without being pollinized. Being a direct hybrid between pear and quince, you can imagine that the pear is quite hard. It needs two months to ripen off the tree, but even then the texture is quite firm. But it does have unsurpassed flavor, appreciated by pear connoisseurs and aficionados. It is sometimes appreciated by expert chefs as well, and with just a slight amount of cooking it makes for superb dessert dishes. While passé crassane is generally a rather obscure and hard to find pear variety in America, brief mention of it did appear in a 1992 L.A. Times article about pears growing in orchards of Julian, CA, (alternatively spelled Passe-Crassane), so I would imagine there are at least a few people growing it there. "Besides Julian's Apples, There Are the Pears" The Arboreum Company nursery, located in Santa Clara County, also sells Passe Crassane, but they may not always have it in stock available to sell. Passé crassane is extremely susceptible to fire blight, perhaps more so than any other pear, so I don't want to get anyone's hopes up who may live in a different part of the country. This will not be a problem in the dry climate of Southern California and the rest of the Southwest though. The French used to export a huge amount of these pears to England and Germany, but because of fire blight issues the country later banned new plantings of this once-iconic variety. There are a small number of commercial plantings still being operated in Northern Italy, where they thrive in that climate. (and coastal Southern California has a Mediterranean-type climate, I will point out) To summarize what I'm saying, those quince genes may make certain European pear varieties like passé crassane and Comice more suitable to grow in warmer dry climates, so they may be worth a try where you live, for anyone willing to experiment.

Here in Zone 5-6 (Western Montana) I ripened Anjou, Gold Spice, and one I'm not sure of because I lost the graft label, probably Flemish Beauty. Had Ure coming when I picked it early. Other grafts on my tree that have yet to produce are Clapp's Favorite, Dana's Hovey, White Doyenne, Seckel, and Winter Nellis, as well as local favorite "Frost" and a family heirloom from Lou Pezzuti, which we named for his father Joe. Joe originally saved scions from a tree that was getting bulldozed (I suspect a seedling). A neighbor has some beautiful Boscs. The original tree is Gold Spice on FHx333, I believe, and has been a reliable producer every year, including the year it was planted; one year I had no pollination, but that is another story. The tree is kept at 12 feet tall and about 8 feet diameter by pruning. Some grafts do appear more vigorous than others and I prune them more aggressively. And I grafted Flemish Beauty to a Bartlett on unknown rootstock and it overgrew badly- it's been a wrestling match ever since to keep it hewn to a manageable level and I haven't full succeeded in controlling it (not my tree, so I can't obsess over it as much as I might.) Just FWIW, M

try the fruit forum .. as they do things very different than tree peeps .... but i would bet my shiny penny... it will involve spraying ... take your carrot peeler.. and peel them.. and then cook them like apples to make the pear version of apple sauce ... put them in paper bags for a month or so ... in the garage... and they will yellow and soften.. here in MI... dad used to spread them on the picnic table.. and they bombed out of the tree.. and would leave them there thru about mid october.. before they finally ripened .... NOT in sun .... and the only if the squirrels will leave them alone .... think about them being a fruit cellar fruit.. that would store for near half the winter, underground, cool and dark ..... not unlike apples/gourds/etc ... and you will come to understand.. how and why historically ... they were a winter long treat... [whereas you have to 'can' all the rot-able stuff... like tomato.. and all the fruit that has to be jellified.. to use all winter] do not be confused.. as i was for a decade or so.. lol .. that you pick and eat these.. off the tree .. unless you have some very strong teeth ... no one said.. organic home grown fruit is pretty.. it usually is not ... ken ps: why do we can things.. in glass... whats that all about.. lol ...

PEARS MELBA (serves 4) 3 cups water 3" cinnamon stick 1 tsp vanilla 1 1/2 TBL fresh lemon juice, reserving 1/2 tsp One 1x3" piece of lemon zest 4 large pears, stems intact, peeled, halved & cored 1 TBL cornstarch 10 oz frozen raspberries, thawed, drained, reserve juice 1 cup low-fat cottage cheese 2 tsp sugar Mint leaves In large skillet combine water, cinnamon stick, vanilla, 1 TBL lemon juice & zest. Bring water to high simmer; add pears & poach, covered, 10 minutes. (Can be prepared up to this point, covered & chilled overnight.) Add cornstarch to reserved raspberry juice; heat until slightly thickenened. Add berries: cool. Puree cottage cheese, reserved lemon juice & sugar until smooth & creamy. Matching halves, fill each pear half with 2 TBL cheese mixture; stand upright on plate & press halves together. Level bottom, if necessary by cutting off thin slice. Spoon 2 TBL rasberry sauce over each pear. Place mint leaf at each stem. May chill several hours.~~Sounds Delicious FRESH AUTUMN PEAR BREAD (1 loaf) 1 stick unsalted butter, softened 1 cup sugar 2 eggs, slightly beaten 1 tsp vanilla 2 cups flour 1/2 tsp salt 1 tsp baking powder 1/2 tsp baking soda 1/8 tsp grated nutmeg 1/4 cup buttermilk or yogurt 1 cup coarsely chopped fresh ripe pears, skin left on Preheat oven to 350°. Butter a 9" loaf pan. In a large bowl, using a mixer, cream the butter & sugar together until light & fluffy. Add the eggs & vanilla. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda & nutmeg. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture alternately with the buttermilk, mixing gently but thoroughly. Gently stir in the pears. Transfer the dough to the prepared pan. Bake 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.~~More than a Tea Party PEAR CRISP (serves 6) 6 ripe pears, peeled, cored & sliced 1 TBL lemon juice 1/2 tsp cinnamon 1/4 tsp nutmeg 3/4 cup flour 1/2 cup butter, softened 1/2 cup quick-cooking oats 1/2 cup brown sugar Place pears in a greased 2 qt baking dish. Toss pears w/lemon juice, cinnamon & nutmeg. In a bowl, combine flour & butter until mixture resembles crumbs. Add oats & brown sugar. Stir well; sprinkle over pears. Bake in a preheated 375° oven for 20-25 minutes or until browned & pears are tender. Serve w/ice cream or whipped cream.~~Food for Thought