Christianka

Christianka pear is a medium-sized variety developed at the Lviv Experimental Orchard Station in 1962 by crossing Josephine Mechelska and Parisanka. The tree has an inverted pyramidal, sturdy crown, reaching 4-5 meters in height and 3-3.5 meters in diameter at 10 years old. Shoots are of medium thickness, straight, yellowish. Leaves are medium-sized, egg-shaped with a long tip, greenish-yellow, glossy and entire, located on long slender petioles. The variety is characterized by regular and fairly abundant fruiting, yielding 180-326 centners per hectare for trees aged 5-18 years. The fruit of Christianka pear are medium-sized, weighing 170-185 grams, with larger ones reaching 210-245 grams. They have a regular broad-pear shape and medium-density skin, which is light-yellow during harvest, turning greenish-yellow with slight blush upon ripening. The flesh is creamy, juicy, yet dense and oily, free of granules, with a pleasant slightly sour-sweet flavor and a well-developed almond aroma. The taste rating is 4-4.5 points. The pear belongs to late-winter varieties: harvestable maturity occurs in October, and the consumption period lasts from December to March. When stored in refrigerators, the shelf life can be extended until April-May without deterioration of flavor and oiliness. The variety exhibits high winter hardiness and resistance to scab, making it especially valuable for the forest-steppe and southern Polissya regions of Ukraine. Additionally, Christianka pear boasts high regular yield, excellent taste qualities, good marketability, and good storability both under normal storage and in refrigerators.