Harvest and Maturity Harvest occurs between mid-August and early October. Most growers determine harvest by fruit taste and color. Fruit should be harvested with stems and carefully placed in buckets and boxes gently to prevent bruises and scuff marks. Storage Fruit can be stored at 32 degrees for several months with few problems if treated with a fungicide to prevent rot. Temperatures of 29 and 30 degrees can frequently produce frozen fruit.
High humidity is necessary to reduce fruit shrinkage.
Most pears can be stored 3 to 6 months without loss of good taste but their shelf life is 10 days at 70 to 80 degrees temperature. The main markets for the Asian pears are in the western states where a total of about 4 million Asian people live. Fruit can be eaten fresh but are also good sliced in salads, stir-fried foods and fried like apples with oil or butter. The market is estimated at be from 20,000 to 30,000 tons. Fruit size is important to marketing.