Harrow Sweet Pear (Spring 2027)

This is our first year growing Harrow Sweet, so everything below is secondhand until we get more long-term data from our own mother trees.

Overview

Harrow Sweet is a Canadian pear bred for fire blight resistance. It's a Bartlett-type pear that ripens three to four weeks after Bartlett and keeps into the winter.

Origin and History

It came out of Agriculture Canada's research station in Harrow, Ontario, from a cross of Bartlett and Purdue 80-51. Cummins says it was introduced in 1996 by R.E.C. Layne and H.A. Quamme.

Fruit and Uses

The fruit is yellow with a red blush, sweet and juicy, and Cummins and Purvis agree on that. It ripens about three to four weeks after Bartlett. It keeps well, about ten weeks according to Cummins and about three months in cold storage according to Purvis, and Cummins calls it "a true winter pear." Cummins lists it for fresh eating, baking and canning.

Growth Habit and Spacing

Ours are on OHxF 87 semi-dwarf rootstock, which runs about 75% the size of a full size pear. Plan on about 15 feet between trees, 12 feet if you're committed to pruning, or up to 18 feet for more room. Cummins describes a medium-sized, upright-spreading, reliably annual tree that's precocious and productive and usually needs heavy thinning. On fire blight, Cummins rates it very resistant and Purvis calls it resistant. Richard Bell of the USDA found it only moderately resistant in West Virginia and noted it seemed more susceptible there than in Canada. Cummins also says it resists mildew but is somewhat susceptible to scab.

Pollination

Harrow Sweet is not self-fertile, per Cummins, so it needs another pear nearby. It blooms mid-season, so Flemish Beauty, Honeysweet, Vermont Beauty, Ubileen, Waterville or Seckel will work.

Cold Hardiness

Bob Purvis reports it hardy in southwest Minnesota to at least -34F, and Cummins rates it zones 4 to 8. We've listed it at zone 4.

Photo credit: USDA-ARS National Plant Germplasm System, National Clonal Germplasm Repository, Corvallis, Oregon, accession PI 617562. Public domain (U.S. government work). Cropped from the original.

Additional photo: “PI 617562 Harrow Sweet plant, 8-28-2021” by USDA-ARS National Plant Germplasm System, National Clonal Germplasm Repository, Corvallis, Oregon, via USDA GRIN, public domain.