Pears Picking / Packing
From Asia to Australia! Get Ready To Earn Cash in Some Crispy Harvesting of Asian Pear While Travelling in Australia
The pear family’s Pyrus pyrifolia, or in the common human word called Asian pear, is known to be the most ancient cultivated pear. It also got to be nicknamed as apple pear right after its crispiness reminiscent to that of an apple. It is also even sometimes called Chinese sand pear, salad pear or Nashi and tastes like that of the ordinary pear you can buy in the market or in fruit stalls.
The mere fact that the fruit owned the name “Asian” pear is due to its home countries being located in Asia, namely Korea, Japan, China, and Taiwan. Each Asian country also calls the fruit with the name of their country or nationality before the word “pear.”
But the Asian pear does not only hold itself back and make itself exclusively available in Asian countries. The Asian pear has been cultivated and propagated as a cultivar in Australia to share its delicious taste to Australians too.
So, what treasures of nutrition can we get from this watery fruit called Asian pear? Our talk-about fruit has its own bragging rights as it carries all its vitamins from the highest DV content – from vitamin C with 8 percent, followed by vitamin K with 7 percent, and folate with 2 percent of DV, potassium with 4, manganese, 4 percent, copper 3 percent and magnesium with 2 percent, and all other vitamins and minerals with 1 percent or less.
If you’re planning to work in the field for Asian pears, you need to familiarize yourself to the basic fact that during its harvest season, Asian pears turn out to be good-to-eat and transform themselves to crispy fruits once they get mature. Also, comparing them with their European version, Asian pears are ready-to-eat fruits that stay crunchy after you harvest them or put them to storage. You will know that the fruit is already ripe when it releases a strong aroma.
These are the common types of Asian Pear or Nashi being produced and harvested in Australia:
• Williams which is normally harvested early to mid February.
• Packham which is normally available to harvest in late February to March.
• Beurre Bosc that is being harvested from late February to late March; and
• Corella which is harvested every March to April.
If you want to earn some cash and be a Nashi picker while travelling in Australia, you have to bear in mind that wage is either by hourly rate or by the amount of fruits you picked. Normally, farms pay based on the Australian Standard pay rate which is at AUD$15 per hour, while contracted ones are being paid by the bins or bucket.
It is a must that as a fruit picker, you must be physically fit as it is a hard labor. You have to wear appropriate clothes such long sleeved ones. You have to wear sunglasses as the sun can be very bright, especially in the afternoon. You must also bring with you sunscreen, gloves, hat and water bottle for hydration.
Pears’ Nutritional and Health Benefits Plus Pear-picking Tips for Travelers
Australia is one of the major producers and exporters of products around the world, such as milk and fruits, and among these fruits are Pears. There are many varieties of pears that are harvested in Australia: Williams Bon Chretien, Beurre Bosc, Corella or Forelle, Josephine de Malines, Packhams Triumph, Red D’Anjou, Red Sensation and Winter Nelis.
Winter Nelis, also known as Honey Pear, is a small to medium-sized green pear fruit with red patches that can be harvested from March to November and has a sweet taste that is good for cooking. Williams Bon Chretien, aka Bartlett Pear, is a large long-necked, green-yellowish fruit that can be harvested in February. Josephine de Malines, where its peak season starts from April to November, is famous for its rich taste. It is greenish in color and medium in size.
Red D’Anjou, on the other hand, is a dark-reddish color slightly egg-shaped pear that is available all year-round. Beurre Bosc is greenish-brown in color with an exquisite sweet taste and is available between March and November. Another pear that can be found in Australia is the Corella, which is also known as Forelle pear – a greenish-yellow red pear with a mild taste. Packham’s Triumph is a good-flavored golden-green pear while Red Sensation is a medium-sized red and gold pear that is good for desserts like fruit salads. Its peak season is between February to May.
Pears are excellent source of vitamins A, B1, B2, C, E, folic acid and niacin. It is also rich in phosphorus and potassium. Pears also have many health benefits such having anti-oxidants that helps control blood pressure, reduces cholesterol, builds up the immune system, regulates the bowel movement and relieves various inflammatory conditions. It is also rich in fiber that benefits the colon. Its good anti-oxidants prevents any diseases and cancer.
If you are traveling in Australia, you can enjoy the beautiful nature of the country and at the same time, earn money. There are a lot of seasonal fruit picking jobs available in Australia and since the country has huge land of different crops, fruit picking is an all year round activity.
If you choose to work as pear pickers, make sure to wear appropriate clothes, ensure that you are fit to work and always bring plenty of water. You can be paid per hour with an average wage of 15 Australian dollars or you can be paid for the amount of pears you have picked. You can earn up to 35 Australian dollars for 6 bins of pears, depending on how fast you work.
Pears can ripen on its tree though most pears don’t ripen finely while it is still on the tree. Most pears are picked unripe and is left to ripe in a cool, dry places for a better quality. Those pears left to ripen on the tree usually rots in the middle. So make sure to pick those that are slightly immature because it will ripen with a better taste than those matured ones
