I like produce. I like to grow it. I like to eat it. I like to create recipes with it. I’m also kind of a nerd and like to get to know my produce. I like learning new or fun tidbits of info about the produce I’m growing/eating/baking. If you’re a weirdo like me then buckle up for this new series as I dive into a plethora of produce facts and share them with you.
1. The Bartlett is the most popular variety of pear in the United States but there are over 3,000 pear varieties grown around the world. {Wowza, I had no idea!}
2. Pears are considered by to be a hypoallergenic fruit because pear allergies are really rare. Ever heard on anyone allergic to pears?
3. The world’s most expensive pear is a Buddha shaped pear that sells for over $9.00 each. The Buddha pear looks exactly like a Buddha statue, even down to the facial details. It’s wild. Want to grow one? You can find the mold HERE.
4. Before tobacco was introduced in Europe, pear leaves were smoked. I wonder if pear cigarettes were as toxic?
5. People have been growing pears for YEARS! They really are ancient history. There is even evidence that our prehistoric ancestors were already growing and eating pears as food.
6. The wood from a pear tree is used in making furniture and kitchen utensils, as well as smoking meats.
Pear tart from Inès Patisserie Seattle, Washington
7. The Greeks were all about their pears! The pear was sacred to two goddesses in Greek mythology: Hera and Aphrodite. It was also sacred to Juno and Venus, as well as to Pomona, the Roman goddess of fruitfulness. Also, in The Odyssey, Homer called the pear a “gift from the Gods.”
8. In China, it is bad luck for lovers or friends to share a pear because it may result in a quarrel or separation.
Recipe for Upside Down Pear Gingerbread Cake
9. The Chinese also considered the pear, which they call “li,” to be a symbol of immortality. The destruction of a pear tree symbolized tragic or untimely death.
10. You will rarely get an upset stomach when you eat a pear because its low acid level is very gentle on the digestive system. In fact, the ancient Greeks used it as a remedy against nausea.
Had you heard any of those fun facts before? Do you have any of your own to add? Is there a particular produce item you want to know more about? I take requests!
Grow on,
Mavis
Julie Astry says
Brussels Sprouts!
Bev H says
I posted before but had to add that we have a wild pear tree in a ditch just down from the fatm. We have picked it for years, leave a little for the birds. They are only about 2 1/2″ . But they are so sweet and cute. Tell me what else I can do with them besde the eating!
Nicole Modlin says
This just reminded me I need to get some pears to make pear butter. Keep forgetting it is already pear season.
Mavis Butterfield says
I’m waiting for our local fruit stand to harvest!!! I love pear butter.
Cait says
I’m allergic to pears 🙁 Oral allergy syndrome. Wheee.
Debbi says
Taking Benadryl helps with the itching. For next time (I have poison oak in my yard so believe me there will be a next time) keep a bottle of Tecnu in the shower , it removes the oil instead of spreading it.
Lindsey says
My husband is very allergic to pears. He gets giant painful boils, even if pears are just an additive and not the main ingredient in something like a bread.
Lauralli says
I wish I liked pears! One of the very few fruits I have never liked.
Jenny says
Our coffee table is made of pear wood. I thought that was unusual. We have a summercrisp pear that we planted but it hasn’t produced fruit yet. There was one branch of flowers this year but no fruit. I am hoping by next year it will start to produce. It is 4 years old and I have been told that it takes a least 3 years for the pears to start producing here.
Laurel says
Any Insights on when to pick the pears? My tree has three varieties on it, Anjou, Bartlett, and one other. It is mostly Anjou though. Live in VA
TerriSue says
I really like pears. I will go for a Bartlett pretty fast in the grocery store but an Anjou pear forget it. I once read that Anjous are the equivalent to Red Delicious apple in the pear family and I believe it. They have no flavor. Boscs are another favorite. Living in the south it is quite difficult to grow apple or pear trees. When I was growing up in Kansas we had a friend who had a huge pear tree in their back yard that held a tree house and circle swing. Once a year she would have mothers and children come over to pick. We always picked them before they ripened. She said you should never let a pear ripen on the tree. Any truth to that?
Sue says
I too would like to know about picking before they are ripe? How do you know when it’s time?
Also I second the vote for brussels sprouts for an upcoming post.
Really enjoying watching you get settled in your new place, especially the garden.
linda says
Jenny, at the third year, and every year thereafter, pear trees need a high nitrogen fertilizer applied around the tree’s dripline. Starks recommends 45-0-0 fertilizer, 1/4 lb. per 1″ of tree trunk diameter, applied in the early spring two weeks before buds break open. I learned today that the same thing applies to my apple trees. Good luck!
Karen says
Use hot water as hot as hubby can stand on poison ivy rash. Hope hubby feels better soon!
Brenda says
I use Ivarest..very good on the itch. Zanfel if you want to fork over $$$$. Prednisone dose pack if it is extreme. I suffer every year..mostly now from the dogs bringing it in on their fur. I avoid the vine like the plague!
JAN WALKER says
Oh Mavis, I can imagine he’s driving you crazy with his itching & complaining!! Have two suggestions, both are old-time remedies but they both work well.
First, get a bar of Fels Naptha soap and have him wash the affected areas with it. My mom used to do that & it dried up the poison ivy & stopped the madness.
Other is a little more odd…my husband’s aunt soaked a clean wash rag in gasoline & after wringing it out well, wiped the affected areas with it. Took but one treatment to take care of the problem, and they never got it again, even if they handled it! Yes, it stings a little but in the long run, it’s easier to take than itching!!
Hope he’s over this soon!!
Becky says
He who plants pears plants for his heirs. They live a long time!
Toni says
ELDERBERRIES!
I try to follow recipes, but the berries smell awful, cooking them makes the house stink, and I can never stand it long enough to strain the juice and make jelly/syrup. How do you deal with the smell? Yes, I am 100% sure these are elderberries. What can I do with these suckers?
Thanks!
Practical Parsimony says
I really dislike fresh pears. The feel on my tongue is awful. However, I make pear butter and pear preserves and love both. One year, I I picked 120 lbs. of pears off a pear tree on public property. Others picked them, too. I pick them hard and green. Leaving them on the table in a single layer allows them to ripen to a soft, sweet ripeness. I just cannot get past the feel on my tongue. No, they should not be left on the tree to ripen. If you do, they just get mushy and fall off the tree where wasps and ants start to eat them.
Bradford Pears! I have eaten them and know they are edible, but people don’t believe me.
Elaine says
My son gets poison ivy just by looking at it!
I do a couple of things; first if it’s not a huge patch I dab tea tree oil and then lavender oil on the blisters (clean q-tip each time) Then COVER IT! Band-aid on small spots and gauze on larger patches. I have wrapped my child like a mummy!
I also made a spray with lavender oil, tea tree, apple cider vinegar and water (that helps the itching) and I’ve also taken straight aloe and mixed in lavender and tea tree oil, mix well, slather on and COVER IT!
My son never complains about the itching and his clears up super fast.
Now the second he sees a PI blister he is dabbing and covering without a question and doesn’t spread. I think covering it is key.
I have never had poison ivy – but I did just have shingles and used same concoctions and it seemed to help (never had Shingles before so nothing to compare to but it was BRUTAL)
Good luck!