Asian Pears

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20TH CENTURY ('Nijiseiki')
Price: $ 24.95
Medium-sized Asian pear with smooth, thin skin and excellent quality. Juicy, sweet, with mild flavor; crisp like an apple when ripe. Easy to grow. Medium-sized upright tree bears heavily; best to thin. Late bloom. Ripens in early to mid August; keeps well. 450 hrs. Self-fruitful or pollinated by Shinseiki, Bartlett, or other pear or Asian pear. Available on: OHx333

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CHOJURO
Price: $ 22.95
Medium-sized Asian pear with thick, russetted, golden brown skin. Crisp, firm, with very sweet, aromatic flavor. Late bloom. Resistant to alternaria, black spot, scab. Ripens in mid-Aug. with heavy yields. 450 hrs. Pollinated by Hosui, Shinko or other pear. Available on: Betula.

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HOSUI
Price: $ 24.95
Large, top quality fruit; high scoring in taste tests; perhaps the tastiest Asian pear. Juicy, very sweet, flavorful, refreshing, low-acid. Brownish-orange skin, russet-type. Blooms late, ripens early to mid Aug. 450 hrs. Pollinated by Shinko, Chojuro, Bartlett, or 20th Century. Available on: OHxF 333

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KIKUSUI
Price: $ 22.95
Medium-sized, juicy, sweet, crisp Asian pear with smooth, greenish-yellow skin. Superb fresh eating, one of the best. Easy to grow. High yields; keeps well. Blooms late. Ripens mid-August. Resistant to fireblight. 450 hrs. Partly self-fruitful or pollinated by Ishiiwase, 20th Century, or other. Available on: Betula.

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SEIGYOKU
Price: $ 22.95
Large, sweet, flavorful, crisp, juicy Asian pear with smooth yellow skin. Best eating quality; high yields. Late bloom; blooms after Shinseiki and 20th Century but ripens in early to mid Aug., a few days earlier than 20th Century. 500 hrs. Partially self-fruitful or pollinated by Kikusui, 20th Century or Bartlett. Available on: Betula.

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SHINKO
Price: $ 24.95
Late ripening (Sept./Oct.) and excellent quality. Large, juicy, sweet, crisp, flavorful russet-type Asian pear with greenish or golden brown skin. Late blooming; variety most resistant to fireblight. Bears very young and heavily every year; best with thinning. Ripens in Sept.; keeps well. 450 hrs. Pollinated by Hosui, Chojuro, Kikusui, Bartlett. Available on: OHxF333

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SHINSEIKI
Price: $ 24.95
Juicy, sweet, mild, medium-sized Asian pear with smooth, thin, bright yellow skin. Easy to grow. Keeps well. Harvest late July/early August. Vigorous, precocious, usually bears in 2nd year; high yields. 350-450 hrs. Self-fruitful. Available on: OHxF333

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TSU LI
Price: $ 22.95
Medium to large pear-shaped Asian pear, yellow-green Chinese variety. Fruit is juicy and crisp with mild, excellent flavor, smooth skin; keeps up to 8 months. Early bloom, pollenizer for Ya Li in warm winter climates. Vigorous tree; resistant to fireblight. Harvest in September with Ya Li. 300 hrs. Pollinated by Ya Li. Available on: Betula.
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YA LI
Price: $ 22.95
Pear-shaped, greenish-yellow Asian pear, smooth-skin Chinese type. Large, tender, very juicy, crisp, moderately sweet; refreshing with excellent quality. Highly productive; keeps well. Ripens in September. Early bloom; resistant to fireblight. Vigorous tree. 300 hrs. Pollinated by Tsu Li. Available on: Betula.

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4-N-1 Asian Pear
Price: $ 47.95
4-N-1 Asian Pear with Chojuro, Hosui, Shinseiki and 20th Century. Available on: OHxF333

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Asian Pears

ROOT STOCKS FOR ASIAN PEARS

BETULAEFOLIA (Betula)
Standard rootstock for Asian and flowering pears. More vigorous than Calleryana; unpruned tree height of fruiting varieties 15-25 ft.; tree may be held to any height with summer pruning. Tolerates wet soil, dry soil, alkaline soil. Resistant to pear decline. More cold hardy than Calleryana, to at least -10° F.

OLD HOME x FARMINGDALE 333 (OHxF 333)
For European and Asian pears. Trees dwarfed to 2/3 the size of standard, or about 12-18 ft.; easily kept smaller with summer pruning. Productive and precocious. Highly resistant to fireblight and pear decline and moderately tolerant of crown gall. Well anchored and does not sucker. Highly resistant to winter injury; widely adapted.

The Asian pear is often called “pear apple” although it is not a cross between an apple and a pear. Rather, it is the descendant of two Asian species of pear. The fruit is sweet and juicy, often described as refreshing. Most of the species we find in the U.S. are the Japanese variety which are round shaped. We also carry the Chinese varieties, Tsu Li and Ya Li; these Asian pears are shaped like the European pear; they also require very few chill hours and pollinize each other. Most Asian pears do not require as many hours of cold as the European pears, but they can withstand frost.

Asian pears are somewhat less susceptible to the bacterial disease fire blight (Erwinia amylovora) which can be a problem for European pears. Certain varieties such as Shinko , Kikusui, Tsu Li and Ya Li exhibit more resistance. This disease is more prevalent in certain parts of the country; check with your local ag or horticultural experts if you are in doubt about your area. Coddling moths can also be a problem; they attack apples and European pears as well. Pheromone traps can be useful as indicators of their presence and the most beneficial time to spray. An important deterrent is a thorough clean-up in the fall; be sure to remove all old fruit left on the ground.

Asian pears grow about 25 to 30 feet tall and half as wide; they can easily be kept smaller with pruning. White blossoms appear in the spring, normally followed by a heavy crop of fruit; thin the fruit to one fruit per spur or you will have many very small Asian pears! Fruit matures late in the summer or early fall; you can usually tell if it’s ripe when it begins falling to the ground. The fruit is sweet when ripe, rather tasteless before. Unlike European pears, the fruit is ready to eat when picked at the ripe stage. Asian pears store exceptionally well. They do not cook nearly as fast as European pears and can be used in many recipes calling for apples. The fruit is a nice addition to salads. The recipe below has been adapted for Asian pears:

  • Curried Asian Pear Salad
  • Prepare a vinaigrette dressing by pounding a clove of garlic with ½ teaspoon of salt in a mortar until it forms a smooth paste.
  • Add 2 teaspoons curry powder and ½ teaspoon fresh grated ginger. Then stir in 1 ½ tablespoons lemon juice or red wine vinegar. Then whisk in 6 tablespoons of olive oil.
  • Combine two sliced Asian pears, 4 sliced beets (cooked with skins removed), one bunch of minced scallions, and ½ cup chopped and roasted walnuts.
  • Toss with two tablespoons of dressing. Arrange lettuce, such as Romaine or Butter lettuce on individual plates and drizzle remaining dressing on top.