Are there any Pear trees that are late droppers? Do pears drop earlier than apples? Also, is there a Pear tree that is like the DR Liberty Apple as far as being DR? What rootstock would any of the pear growers recommend for Wildlife purposes only in Ct . Was thinking about adding some pears next year and just wanted to get an idea .
Pear trees
- Thread starter BobinCt
- Start date
Troubles Trees
5 year old buck +
This place has a good selection of Pears for deer season drop times but it's late to order bud, alot of the selections are sold out but worth a look. I just checked Nativ and they are out of anything cold hardy.
https://bluehillwildlifenursery.com/product-category/pear-trees-for-sale/
https://bluehillwildlifenursery.com/product-category/pear-trees-for-sale/
not sure if keiffer pears can handle your area or what you consider late dropping but the keiffers on my place start dropping in Oct. and still had pears on after thanksgiving. They were all off the tree by the end of first week in Dec.
I would say Keiffer pear are the best fruit tree on my farm. After that my other pears are sought out as well. They hit the apples as well but my cam pics tell me pears are the first choice on the two farms I have them both on. The other pro to pears is that they are much less maintenance. I've spent 30 hrs so far this winter pruning them. I have two left and that will be another hour or so. I am not going to prune my apples every year from now on. I'll put them on a 2 or 3 year rotation.
Pears so far have been a five or ten minute prune job as they just grow crazy so I just take the vertical growers that are going to hit a lot of branches and walk away.
On the zone map I am basically just into zone 5.
I would say Keiffer pear are the best fruit tree on my farm. After that my other pears are sought out as well. They hit the apples as well but my cam pics tell me pears are the first choice on the two farms I have them both on. The other pro to pears is that they are much less maintenance. I've spent 30 hrs so far this winter pruning them. I have two left and that will be another hour or so. I am not going to prune my apples every year from now on. I'll put them on a 2 or 3 year rotation.
Pears so far have been a five or ten minute prune job as they just grow crazy so I just take the vertical growers that are going to hit a lot of branches and walk away.
On the zone map I am basically just into zone 5.
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Mortenson
5 year old buck +
Not based on my own experiences yet, but based on lots of research, Kieffers are definitely worth taking a shot on a few. Somebody correct me, but I'll make a statement that the Kieffer is the Liberty of the pear world. Native Hunter here stresses to make sure you get the real deal kieffer and not a fake news one, which has tended to happen occasionally at big box stores.
Native Hunter
5 year old buck +
First of all I know nothing about Ct; however, I do have good knowledge of pears in general. Addressing the questions and issues raised above:
Are there any Pear trees that are late droppers? Do pears drop earlier than apples?: I grow pears that drop from Mid-Summer through December.
Also, is there a Pear tree that is like the DR Liberty Apple as far as being DR?: In general, pears are much easier to grow than apples. To start with, they are not affected by CAR. Fireblight is a big problem for pears, but there are several good varieties which are nearly immune to it, and a few others that show minor infections but still bear good crops and remain healthy. Moonglow is probably the most bulletproof pear I have ever seen and what I would compare to Liberty in Apples. Kieffer would be close to that but can show very minor signs of FB in some growing areas. There are many other great choices in pears. As Mortenson pointed out - there are some fake Kieffers out there. Some of those are not bad pears, but others are problematic. One well known variety that I would avoid is Bartlett. It is highly prone to FB, and can get to looking really bad in a severe strike. However, it generally doesn't kill an old tree, and they will generally still make quite a bit of fruit despite the disease. Look at my fruit tree post for information on other varieties I've had success with.
What rootstock would any of the pear growers recommend for Wildlife purposes only in Ct . I don't know about Ct. but I prefer OHxF 97, which makes close to a full sized tree, and OHxF 87 which makes a semi dwarf. Both of these are widely planted and have a good track record.
PS: Blue Hill has some pear varieties that I don't have, and I'm going to get some of those. I can tell from talking to Ryan on the phone that he really knows his stuff. For someone in the north, he should be a great go-to guy for advice on growing zones, etc....
Are there any Pear trees that are late droppers? Do pears drop earlier than apples?: I grow pears that drop from Mid-Summer through December.
Also, is there a Pear tree that is like the DR Liberty Apple as far as being DR?: In general, pears are much easier to grow than apples. To start with, they are not affected by CAR. Fireblight is a big problem for pears, but there are several good varieties which are nearly immune to it, and a few others that show minor infections but still bear good crops and remain healthy. Moonglow is probably the most bulletproof pear I have ever seen and what I would compare to Liberty in Apples. Kieffer would be close to that but can show very minor signs of FB in some growing areas. There are many other great choices in pears. As Mortenson pointed out - there are some fake Kieffers out there. Some of those are not bad pears, but others are problematic. One well known variety that I would avoid is Bartlett. It is highly prone to FB, and can get to looking really bad in a severe strike. However, it generally doesn't kill an old tree, and they will generally still make quite a bit of fruit despite the disease. Look at my fruit tree post for information on other varieties I've had success with.
What rootstock would any of the pear growers recommend for Wildlife purposes only in Ct . I don't know about Ct. but I prefer OHxF 97, which makes close to a full sized tree, and OHxF 87 which makes a semi dwarf. Both of these are widely planted and have a good track record.
PS: Blue Hill has some pear varieties that I don't have, and I'm going to get some of those. I can tell from talking to Ryan on the phone that he really knows his stuff. For someone in the north, he should be a great go-to guy for advice on growing zones, etc....
H20fwler
5 year old buck +
I have zero knowledge of what’s best for CT either.
I do love pears and have a lot of them, for late dropping pears I would look at Wildlife Group...I think a lot of the WG pears are some variant of Kieffers. Agree pears are way easier to grow than apples.
Kieffers are a really good all-around pear drops for me late October-early Nov or later and one of my favorites to eat myself.
Moonglow is a great pollinator for other pear trees drops early September here doesn't hang long...a mushy crazy sweet pear.
Bartlett is probably the most common pear in my area for some reason, drops late August early Sept here, Gritty pear good eater.
For rootstock I like OHx97 for my loamy clay soil and I want a big tree with a big fruit load.
In my area I get very strong west winds and that knocks pears being heavier off trees way more than the apples I have. If it wasn't for the winds I think my Kieffer varieties would hold longer.
I do love pears and have a lot of them, for late dropping pears I would look at Wildlife Group...I think a lot of the WG pears are some variant of Kieffers. Agree pears are way easier to grow than apples.
Kieffers are a really good all-around pear drops for me late October-early Nov or later and one of my favorites to eat myself.
Moonglow is a great pollinator for other pear trees drops early September here doesn't hang long...a mushy crazy sweet pear.
Bartlett is probably the most common pear in my area for some reason, drops late August early Sept here, Gritty pear good eater.
For rootstock I like OHx97 for my loamy clay soil and I want a big tree with a big fruit load.
In my area I get very strong west winds and that knocks pears being heavier off trees way more than the apples I have. If it wasn't for the winds I think my Kieffer varieties would hold longer.
KyRose
Yearling... With promise
I don’t know what zone you are in Bobinct, I try to keep up with these guys when it comes to fruit trees, I noticed that Blue Hill was mentioned on this thread, Ryan’s FB page and website has become kind of like the old Sears and Roebuck catalog for me , I like looking and wishing. I was looking today and noticed that he does have a few Advent pears left that are a late dropping pear, I’m like a lot of these other members I have ordered some of these pears trees. His website has a chart of drop times and in the description it should have a hardiness zone.
