A ten year old Hood here has always dropped all it's flowers before any neighborhood pears began flowering, but still produced fruit. Regretfully, the fruit production each year varies a lot. It now has pollen help from 2 nearby grafted branches of the Acres Home pear. The Acres Home is the only low chill, fire blight resistant, good eating pear that I have collected that flowers as early as the Hood. If you are a grafter, I could mail some budwood to you next Winter. It will try to leaf out in the refridgerator if stored there too long. Also, it sets fruit at an early age.

What about the "Meadows" selection that is also popular in Houston, and the "Tennhousi" (sp?)?

I've not been able to lay my hands on the former but the latter is now commercially available.

The Meadows, Tennosui, Southern Queen, and Southern King (seedling sister of the Tennosui) pear trees here all began flowering after the Hoods were completely flower free.I could mail some Meadows budwood to you in Winter if you wanted.

I'd very much appreciate budwood then. I could use "Southern King" as well. I also have "LA Beauty/Leona" and "Southern Bartlett" if you can use them. They may fruit this year, where I can be a bit more certain of the correct ID.

Thanks for the offer copingwithclay. I will take you up on that later this year. The Hood will really grow well this season and I will graft the Acres Home.

Many thanks

John

I wonder why the University of Florida would ever have released a FB sensitive pear in the first place?