Where and how to store pears correctly so that they do not spoil
Pear is a delicious but capricious fruit. It is important not only to get a plentiful and high-quality harvest, but also to preserve it. For this, varieties with a high keeping quality are planted, the fruits are kept under optimal conditions or processed. The article will tell you how to preserve pears for the winter and which varieties are suitable for long-term storage.
The content of the article
Features of pear storage
The main factor affecting the storage of the crop is the time of harvest.... Fruits, harvested early, do not have time to acquire the proper taste, ripen unevenly and are prone to disease: bitter pitting, gray, gray moldy and brown rot. When harvested late, the keeping quality decreases and the susceptibility to decay increases.
Reference! A characteristic feature of pears is that they ripen quickly after harvest.
The storage time of the fruit depends on the room temperature and humidity level.: Pears quickly lose water due to their porous skin.
Selection and preparation of fruits
For long-term storage, only whole fruits without signs of disease are suitable, rotting and mechanical damage, collected in the phase of technical and botanical maturity together with the stalks.
Harvested in dry weather, sorted by variety and size, but not washed... Pears harvested after the onset of frost, when the night temperature has dropped below -15 ° C, are not suitable for storage.
Varieties suitable for long-term storage
Among the varieties of culture of different ripening periods, varieties are distinguished, most suitable for long-term storage:
| Ripening period | Variety | Description |
| Autumn. Ripen in late August - early September. | Marble | Medium-sized fruits are covered with dense elastic skin. The pulp is tender sweet. Trees withstand temperatures as low as -25 ° C.
At a temperature of 0… + 3 ° C, the harvest is stored for 60–70 days. |
| Yakovlev's favorite | The trees grow to a height of 3–8 m and withstand frosts down to -30 ° C. The variety is prone to scab damage. Fruits with juicy fleshy pulp of sweet and sour taste.
At a temperature of 0 ... + 6 ° C and an air humidity of at least 70%, the crop is stored for 3 months. |
|
| Victoria | The fruits are large, sweet and juicy. The variety is scab resistant, bears fruit every year and abundantly. Productivity - 180-200 kg per tree.
The keeping quality of fruits at temperatures up to + 5 ° C is 3-4 months. |
|
| Santa maria | Bred in Italy, the variety is characterized by medium-sized trees, abundant yield (50–120 kg per tree), and resistance to scab and frost down to -30 ° C.
The harvest is stored for up to 2 months. |
|
| Autumn and winter. The harvest reaches technical maturity in mid-September - late October. | Bere Luca | Trees 5–5.5 m high, fruits are sweet with a slight sourness, weighing 200–400 g. Productivity - 43–54 kg per tree.
Fruits are stored at a temperature of + 2 ... + 3 ° C for up to 4 months. |
| Striyskaya | Trees up to 4.5 m in height can withstand temperatures down to -25 ° C. Fruits weigh 260-350 g, yield - up to 45 kg per tree.
Keeping quality is 4-5 months. |
|
| Winter. Frost-resistant varieties bred specifically for winter storage. | Pervomaiskaya | The variety tolerates frosts down to -20… -25 ° C. Thanks to the waxy coating on the peel, the fruits are protected from pests, fungal diseases and are stored for 7 months. |
| Charles Cognier | It tolerates a decrease in air temperature to -3 ... -10 ° C. Fruits are sweet with chocolate notes, stored for 6-7 months. | |
| Saratovka | The crop is harvested at the end of September, it is stored for 3-5 months. The variety is resistant to scab and powdery mildew, tolerates frosts down to -30 ° C. |
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How to store pears properly
Fruits are kept in boxes or on shelves, having laid in 1-2 layers with the stalks upwards so that they do not touch each other.
Optimal conditions
Harvests are best stored in dark, well-ventilated areas at a temperature of 0… + 5 ° C and air humidity within 80–90%.
Important! Sharp temperature fluctuations provoke crop rot.
Where to store
So that the harvested fruits do not lose their marketable quality and taste as long as possible, it is important to choose the right place for their storage.
Cellar or basement
In the cellar or basement, pears are kept on shelves and shelveslocated at least 20 cm from the ground. The room is pre-disinfected by fumigating with sulfur vapors for 2-3 days.
Optimum air temperature - + 5 ° C, humidity - 85%... The room should be well ventilated and dark. When exposed to light, the crop is covered with a dark cloth.
Refrigerator
In the refrigerator, at a temperature of + 3 ... + 4 ° C, store only dense, not fully ripe dry fruits. They are pre-packed in plastic bags with holes for ventilation.
Freezer
In this case, the fruit is cut into small pieces and frozen for 2-4 hours at -30 ° Cif there is a temperature setting function. Then set at -18 ° C.
Room temperature
Many gardeners use a pantry or closet to store pears... To do this, the fruits are placed in a box with their tails up and sprinkled with sand or dry oak leaves. The room itself should be dark and well ventilated.
What to store
Pears are kept in wooden boxes, which are preliminarily fumigated with sulfur from mold and rot. and lined with thick paper or straw. The container must have ventilation holes, otherwise the fruit will quickly deteriorate.
The height of the box must match the pears laid in 2 rows... Paper, straw, peat, sawdust or dry moss are placed between them. They divide the fruits among themselves so that they do not touch.
Reference! It is allowed to store pears in plastic bags, from which air is pumped out before use.
No more than 15 kg is placed in the box fruits of the same variety.
Storage methods
The easiest way to store pears is to transfer them with paper.... So that the fruit does not lose its taste and marketability as long as possible, they are sprinkled with sand, sawdust, straw or a mixture of slaked lime and sawdust to prevent moisture loss.
With a small amount of harvest, each fruit is wrapped in wrapping paper... Newspapers are not used due to the toxicity of printing ink.
Can be stored together with apples, grapes
High content in pears ethylene, which accelerates the ripening of fruits, will lead to premature deterioration of the food stored nearby. Therefore, when laying vegetables and fruits, the rules of their compatibility are taken into account.
Storage of pears with apples at a temperature of 0 ... + 2 ° C and air humidity 90–95%. Only incompletely ripe fruits are placed in boxes, which are sorted out and examined at least 2 times a month, timely removing spoiled and darkened specimens.
Reference! Pears are not kept next to potatoes, cabbage, onions, celery, garlic and carrots.
In the refrigerator, the proximity of pears and grapes is allowed for 10-15 days, but always in separate paper bags.
Features of storage of unripe fruits
The crop is harvested at the stage of technical maturity, when the fruits acquire a slight blushbut remain firm. In order for the fruits to ripen on their own, they are left for 2–6 days in a well-lit room at a temperature of + 18… + 20 ° C, checking their condition twice a day.Almost ripe specimens are transferred to a cool (not higher than + 5 ° C) place.
To speed up the ripening of pears, they are put in one bag with apples or bananas.
Recycled storage
Fresh pears are suitable for consumption for a maximum of 7 months. To increase this period, fruits are processed: dried, frozen, canned or candied.
There are several ways to dry:
In the oven... Fruits are spread on a baking sheet and dried for 2 hours at + 55 ... + 60 ° C. Then the temperature is increased to + 80 ° C, and after the pears are reduced in size, they are reduced to + 55 ° C. The whole procedure takes 14-16 hours for slices and 18-24 hours for whole fruits.- In an electric dryer... Thanks to the uniform air circulation, the pears do not have to be turned over, and the presence of several pallets allows you to process up to several kg of fruit at the same time.
- In the microwave... At a power of 200 W, pears are dried for 2-3 minutes. This is the fastest way, but due to the inability to accurately calculate the time, there is a risk of overdrying or burning the fruit.
- On air... Pears are laid out on a surface (for example, baking sheets or trays) and placed in the sun, in a place free from dust and drafts. After 2 days, the fruits are transferred to a shaded place and left to dry for another 2-3 days.
Fresh fruits plucked no more than 2 days ago are suitable for such processing.... Dried fruits are stored in an airtight container: glass jars with a tight lid or zip-fastened bags in a cool dark place.
Before freezing, the pears are washed, cut into 4 pieces and cores removed.... After that, the fruits are dipped in a lemon solution for 30 seconds (juice of 1 lemon in 2 tablespoons of water), dried on paper napkins or towels, put in bags or containers and put into the freezer. They are frozen at -30 ° C, stored at -18 ° C.
To make dried pears, cut them into slices, sprinkle with sugar and leave for 2-3 days. The juice is drained and the pieces are dipped in hot sugar syrup for 10 minutes. Slices are dried at + 60 ° C in the oven for about 6 hours or in an electric dryer for 14 hours. In this form, fruits are stored in glass jars or paper bags at a temperature not exceeding + 10 ° C and an air humidity of 65–70%.
Canned whole pears, pickled, used for making preserves, jams, compotes, juice or even wine. The workpieces are stored in the cellar, closet or on the balcony at a temperature not exceeding + 5 ° C. Make sure that the container is not exposed to direct sunlight.
Storage periods
The average shelf life of pears, depending on the selected method and fruit ripening, are shown in the table:
| Storage method | Storage duration |
| In a refrigerator | Late varieties - 3–8 months, medium - 1–3 months, early varieties - about 3 weeks. |
| Basement / cellar | Early varieties - 1-3 months, late - up to 7-8 months. |
| Room temperature | No more than 2 weeks. |
| Canned | No longer than 1 year. |
| Dried | At air temperatures up to + 10 ° C - about a year, at room temperature - no longer than a month. |
| Dried in sugar | 12-15 months. |
| Frozen | 7-12 months. |
Useful Tips
To keep fresh crops as long as possible, it is recommended:
do not wait for the full ripening of the fruits, harvest in the phase of technical maturity;- pluck the fruit along with the stalk, wearing cloth gloves on your hands;
- carefully examine the fruits before laying them for storage: you cannot keep specimens with signs of disease or mechanical damage, as they will spoil the entire crop;
- put fruits in wooden boxes or cardboard boxes if there are few fruits;
- harvest in dry weather.
How to keep the harvest until the New Year
Winter pears due to their harder peel are characterized by long shelf life... In proper conditions (a dark, well-ventilated room with an air temperature of 0 ... + 5 ° C and a humidity of 80–90%), they preserve their taste and marketability until the New Year.
Early winter varieties (Curé, Nart, Elena, Noyabrskaya, Bere) are stored until January, late winter (Winter Dekanka, Tikhonovka, Izumrudnaya, Maria) - until May, they gain taste for a long time and are unsuitable for eating earlier than December-January.
Conclusion
Despite the porous skin and specific structure of the pulp, pears are well kept at home. It is important to harvest on time, take into account the requirements of the fruit to the temperature and humidity of the room, constantly monitor the condition of the fruits.