Meigetsu pear
Meigetsu is an Asian pear, which differs from Western / European pears by having round fruit that is crisp when ripe. Meigetsu's flavour when ripe is described as having subtle hints of pineapple, butterscotch, or watermelon. Meigetsu pears are a beautiful golden brown with pale lenticels that stand out amidst the background colour.
Meigetsu ripens relatively late in the year – September, perhaps even into early October. Like many Asian pears, Meigetsu are precocious (begins fruiting relatively early in life), and productive (thinning young fruit in early June is recommended in order to have larger fruits).
I came across an author who was told by a Japanese colleague that this pear is named ‘full moon’ in Japanese. Online translations tell me ‘full moon’ translates to mangetsu, which is close enough that this could be true.
Disease resistance:
Resistant to pear scab, susceptible to fire blight.
Parentage:
Grown since the 19th century, but of unknown parentage or breeding process.
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