how many varieties of pears are there?

Answer 1

Abbé is a 19th century variety that is long and thin. It is a greenish-brown pear that often has a red blush. A mid-autumn pear that is used mainly for desserts, it has a good flavour and texture.

Anjou is a large, broad, lopsided, greenish-yellow pear, which has brown speckles or russeting. The flesh is spicy and juicy. It originated in France or Belgium in the 19th century and now exists in several forms, including the Red Anjou. A dual-purpose pear, it has juicy, sweet flesh. Anjou (full name is Beurre d'Anjou) is the main winter pear of North America.

Bartlett is the name used in North American and Australia, but in England it is known as Williams Bon Chrétien or English Williams. It is irregularly shaped, generally swollen on one side of the stem. Its speckled skin is golden yellow, with russet patches or sometimes tinged with red. The tender, juicy flesh is creamy white; and the flavour is sweet, but slightly musky; but they do not keep well. Named after the American grower Enoch Bartlett, it was first raised in 1770 in Berkshire, England, by a schoolmaster called John Stair and was renamed Williams when it arrived in London. In 1817, it was taken to America by Enoch Bartlett and renamed again. The season for these pears begins in late summer. The original variety, Williams Bon Chrétien, is dull green with a red flush. There are now varieties that are a clear greens and reds, as the Red Williams.

Beth is a modern variety, resembling Williams Bon Chrétien in flavor and texture, but keeps longer.

Beurré is particularly soft and juicy, with only a touch of the gritty texture of other varieties of pears. It includes two good winter eating varieties: Beurre d'Anjou (see above) and Beurre Bosc. Beurré Bosc is an elongated pear, having a firm, but juicy, flesh and a buttery texture. Beurré Superfin is a medium to large pear, with a round but conical shape. It has a knobbly skin, but a delicious flavor. Its creamy-white flesh is firm and buttery and extremely juicy, with just a hint of acidity. Beurré Hardy is a harder variety often used for canning.

Bosc is a dark yellow, winter pear with a reddish cast. This variety is unmistakable with its long, tapering neck. Its yellowish-white, juicy flesh has an aromatic flavour, which is described as buttery, but not melting.

Clapp Favourite is an early-ripening American dessert pear of fair quality, but its texture is rather granular. It is broad, with a dull greenish yellow colour overlaid with some russeting.

Comice, also known as Doyenné du Comice (means 'top of the show'), is one of the finest of pears, with creamy white, melting very juicy flesh and an aromatic flavour. The thick, yellowish green skin is covered with speckles and patches of russeting. These pears are larger than most, with a broad, blunt shape, and available from late autumn to midwinter.

Conference is a widely sold English winter variety that is easily recognized by its long thin shape and extensive russetting on the skin, which turns yellower as it matures. Once described as looking like "a parsnip in khaki battledress", the Conference has a flavour and texture that outweighs its appearance. Conference was first cultivated in Berkshire in 1770, and remains a British favorite because it is a dual-purpose pear, keeps well, and has a sweet, juicy flavour.

Forelle is a golden pear with a deep red flush on one side. The grainy flesh is crisp when eaten raw, but are best when cooked.

Glou Morceau is a pear that dates back to the 18th century when it was called Beurre d'Hardenpont. It was named after a Belgian priest, Abbé Nicolas Hardenpont of Mons, who was the first breeder of pears and who gave the world half a dozen of the "melting" pears. Four of these, including this variety, are still available.

Jargonelle is an old French pear, dating from about 1600. It is a dual-purpose pear, with a distinctive aroma that is roughly imitated in the traditional British sweets called pear drops. The main component of the fragrance is amyl acetate -- which is also the aroma of nail polish remover.

Josephine de Malines is a Belgian pear which is still grown commercially in the Southern Hemisphere. Grown in 1830, it was named by its grower, Major Espéren, for his wife and after the area of their home. Malines is a town of Flanders. A good keeper, this variety is the only important pear to have pink flesh and a scent resembling that of the hyacinth.

Kaiser is a big, coarse, russet pear readily available in Europe. It has no special qualities.

Louise Bonne de Jersey is a pear that is picked towards the end of September, but not until it has a painted, varnished look. The red must be shining, and the green portion on the way to turning yellow.

Merton Pride is an English pear whose history only goes back to the 1950s. It has a yellowish skin and very soft, juicy flesh, with a good strong pear flavour.

Olivier de Serres is an old French variety often seen in southern Europe, ripening very late and having a good flavour. It is a dull greenish brown and so squat and short-necked that it might be mistaken for a green russet apple.

Onward is a cross between Laxton's Superb and Doyenné du Comice. It is exceptionally good eating, but requires peeling.

Packham's Triumph is the first successful Australian pear. It was first produced by Charles Packham in 1896, and remains a favourite dessert pear. This variety seems to grow best in the Southern Hemisphere.

Passé Crasanne (Passacrassana, if it comes from Italy) is a very plump, round, late winter pear, suitable mainly for cooking as its texture is somewhat gritty. Very juicy and sweet, this broad dullish green pear is common in southern Europe.

Red Bartlett or Red Williams has a shiny, green speckled skin with a red blush at first, but turning to a yellow flushed with red. The flesh is juicy and sweet.

Rocha is a Portugese pear with greenish yellow skin and russet or brown spotting at the stem. A good keeper, it has firm white flesh and a sugary flavour.

Seckel is a small American pear with a good spicy flavour but a granular texture and quite distinct from any of the European varieties. A Sekel pear is brownish yellow and russeted often with a red blush. It is named after the trapper who found the seedling after he bought a piece of woodland in Delaware in 1765.

Warden was a cooking pear often referred to by Shakespeare and Parkinson. For centuries, it was the most commonly grown pear, and originated at the Cistercian Monastery of Wardon in Bedfordshire, England.

Williams Bon Chrétien is more commonly known in the US and Australia as the "Bartlett". Although excellent for eating raw or cooked, it does not keep well. It was first raised in 1770 in Berkshire by a schoolmaster called John Stair; but was renamed Williams when it arrived in London, and later renamed again when it was taken to America by Enoch Bartlett. There are now several varieties, and all are good for eating raw, cooking, and canning. Although generally a dull green with a red blush, there are now clear green varieties, as well as red ones.

Winter Nelis is a roundish, medium-sized, dual-purpose pear that has thick, but tender, greenish-yellow skin with a cinnamon-brown russeting, or sometimes a pink flush. The flesh is creamy white, soft and juicy; and the flavour is sweet and spicy. Winter Nelis is a long-keeping pear in season, but tends to go bad quickly when stored from late autumn to late spring. It is less popular than it once was, partly because of its small size and rough skin. It was named after a 19th century Belgian grower, Jean Charles Nelis.

Asian pears, Chinese pears, Japanese pears, sand pear
(Pyrus pyriformis and Pyrus ussurensis family Rosaceae)

The development of Asian pears is proceeding rapidly. There are two accepted species with the number of varieties increasing. These pears are crisp and never soft like the common pear varieties. Fruits of P. pyriformis are mostly apple-shaped while those of P. ussurensis are not. There are a great many varieties, cultivars, and hybrids therefore, there is no one general description that could fit for all. Each is unique with its own size, shape, colour, and flavour. The variety most popular in Japan and the US is the Twentieth Century (Nijisseiki), a round fruit which is quite sweet and very juicy. Asian pears need to be cooked for a long time and if eaten raw, it must be remembered that they will always be more crisp and crunchy. They are better enjoyed if they are sliced very thinly.

There are many varieties of Asian or Nashi pears but their characteristics are similar to that of other pears except that many are round rather than the familiar "pear-shape". Other notable varieties include the following:

Hosui pears have much the same crunch and juiciness as Tientsin pears, and taste like a cross between an apple and an unripe pear.

Perry pears were used mainly as "alcoholic" pears. A few producers still press them into juice, wine, or "champagne" perry. Although there are about 300 known varieties, they are never sold commercially. They look delicious; but, because they contain large amounts of tannin, their taste is bitter and astringent, raw or cooked.

Tientsin pears are from China and Korea and are very similar to Asian Nashi pears, both in taste and in texture. Tientsins are available when others are not in season. They are crunchy, but juicy, and have an elongated shape, tapering at both ends.

Answer 2

16

Answer 3

in the dirr book i counted 16 cultivars of bradford pear. there are 5 additional species