This is when to harvest pears, plus tips on how to do it

Knowing exactly when to harvest pears can be a bit tricky. Pears are worth keeping an eye on once the fruits have appeared, that's because you harvest pears when they're fully formed, not when they're ripe.

A pear tree appreciates plenty of sunshine, a good amount of shelter, and a fertile soil that can hold plenty of moisture. When they're well looked after, these fruit trees will make a brilliant addition to any kitchen garden, producing beautiful blossom in the springtime and the branches are laden with pears once fall rolls around. 

To make sure you get the best from your crop, however, harvesting the fruit at the correct time is key. 

Discover when to harvest pears for the juiciest fruit

Pears are some of the best fruit trees to grow in pots, and are a rather anomalous fruit when it comes to harvesting. Pears need to be picked before they're fully ripe. This is because pears continue to ripen once mature. If they're left on the tree to fully ripen, their texture starts to get mealy and gritty as it breaks down from the inside. 

So how do you know when a pear is 'almost ripe'? 

The team at Burpee Europe tell us, 'You should pick pears when the base green color starts to change and lighten. The flesh should yield slightly when pressed gently. If the pear is ready for harvesting, you should be able to pluck it easily from the tree.'

If unsure, you can always pick one and give it a taste test; the flesh should be sweet with a firmness to it. The color of the pips is another good indicator of ripeness: you'll find brown pips in a ripe pear, but green ones if it's yet to ripen. 

There's also no harm in testing the ripeness of a few individual pears before picking a full harvest's worth. You can do the same with dropped pears too.

How to harvest pears in 3 easy steps 

1. First, look at the pear's size, shape and color. Pears go through a color change while growing, typically from green to light yellow. You're looking for a shade that's slightly lighter than usual.
2. Now feel the pear itself. The skin should be firm to the touch, which tells you it can still  ripen when off the tree. If it's already soft then your pear is already too ripe for picking. 
3. Cup the pear in your hand, and tilt it at a horizontal angle. If ripe, the fruit will easily come away from its branch with a snap. You can give it a gentle twist at the stem, but don't force it!

How long do pears take to grow and ripen? 

Pear trees usually start fruiting in their fourth year, but they can take from 3-5 years to flower and produce fruit. These lovely fruit trees can grow to a mature height of about 8-10 feet too, even if you are growing fruit in pots. 

A pear's ripening window is actually pretty small. Once harvested, a pear will be ripe and ready to eat in just a few days – and will probably become overripe soon after. To avoid this, you can keep your pears chilled which delays the ripening process. 

'If you make a note of the time that your pears are ready to be picked you can always harvest them a couple of weeks before this time the following year, therefore ensuring fruits that can be stored a little longer,' say the experts at Burpee Europe.

How do you store pears after harvesting them?

Once picked, pears need cooling for a few days. After that, you can raise the temperature a little and they will ripen in 4-5 days. 

Cold storage will delay the ripening process, so if you've picked almost ripe pears they'll continue to stay hard while in the fridge. Keeping fruit chilled is also a good option when picking a watermelon to ensure it stays fresher for longer. 

Burpee Europe highlights that pears picked before they are quite ripe can also have the ripening process accelerated when placed with fruits such as bananas or apples in a paper bag. 'Bananas and apples give off ethylene gas, which encourages ripening.'