THE PEARS OF NEW YORK 107 
sufficient for separate treatises. In a manual such as this only outlines 
of present practices are in place. Perhaps of all deciduous fruits the pear 
needs as particular attention in the various operations which conduct it 
from the orchard to the table as any other, if, indeed, it is not the most 
difficult of hardy fruits to handle after it leaves the orchard. The several 
operations that should be treated in a discussion of handling the pear crop, 
no matter how brief, are picking, grading, packing, storing, shipping, and 
marketing. . 
The time of picking is most important in handling pears. Pears are 
picked, especially for the markets, long before they are ready to eat out of 
hand. So harvested, almost without exception, all pears acquire higher 
quality than when they ripen on the tree. Moreover, when the necessary 
percentage of sugars and solids has developed to give full flavor the pears 
are too easily bruised to be shipped. Just how green pears can be harvested 
and afterward have the rich shades of red and yellow and the delectable 
flavor of ripe pears develop seems not yet to have been determined.1 No 
doubt the stages of development differ somewhat with the variety. In 
New York, the generally accepted rule is to pick when the stem parts 
readily from the branch if the fruit is lifted. Some wait until there is a 
perceptible yellowing of the maturer fruits; others until full-grown, wormy 
specimens are ripe; still others until the seeds begin to change color. But 
on the Pacific slope and for the cannery in this State, pears are picked when 
much greener than in any of the conditions named and yet seem to ripen 
well. As a matter of economy, the fruits should be left until they attain 
nearly or quite full size. 
The directions just given apply more particularly to the main-crop 
pears and early and fall sorts. Winter pears in this State should be left 
on the trees until in danger from freezing. Even so, the season is too short 
for some choice winter sorts. No matter what the season, pears should be 
shipped before they reach edible condition. A few of the winter pears, 
suitable only for culinary purposes, never soften, and change color little or 
not at all. 
Picking pears is not the delicate business that picking the stone-fruits 
is, but yet must be done with considerable care as a bruise provides a place 
for subsequent decay. Few picking appliances are needed, but these should 
be carefully chosen to insure speed and careful handling of the fruit. A full 
1Some very good preliminary work on harvesting and storing pears has been done by the Oregon 
Experiment Station, and is reported in Bulletin 154, June, 1918, from that Station. 
