How to store pears?

[greenacres]

I know this is probably a dumb question, but what is the best way to store vegetables in Texas besides canning or freezing? I have a ton of pears that I know I cant get to at one time. What should I do with them, so the will keep long enough for me to do something with them? Besides that, my dogs eat the ones that fall to the ground.

[no1cowboy]

Harvest pears while they are still quite firm (hard) but the skin color, or 'ground color', has lightened to a pale green or greenish-yellow color. Ground color is the color of a pear's skin, disregarding any areas that have become red. Don't allow pears to become fully yellow on the tree before harvesting. Additional indications that pears are ready to harvest are when the fruit stem easily separates from the branch with an upward twist of the fruit and when the lenticels (spots on fruit surface), which are white or green on immature fruits, become brown.

After harvest, pears should be held at 60 to 65°F for 1 to 3 weeks, depending on the type of pear. During this time the pears will ripen and soften. High temperatures (75°F and higher) after picking will cause the fruit to break down without ripening.

To keep pears longer in storage, do not allow them to ripen after harvest.
place them into cold storage at 29-31°F and 90% humidity. Perforated plastic bags can be used to store small groups of fruit, and maintain high humidity.

[tamsam]

If I remember right my Granddad would wrap them in newspaper and put them in a cardboard box and put the in the closet where it was cool. Man were they good at Christmas. He also packed turnips in a box with pine needles and they saved for a long time. Hope this helps. Sam