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Because of its aromatic taste, the 'Vereinsdechantsbirne' is also often referred to as the "queen of pears". We will tell you more about the special features of this pear variety.
The 'Vereinsdechantbirne' is valued above all for its fruit
The 'Vereinsdechantsbirne', also known as 'Vereins-Dechant', 'Doyenné du Comice' or 'Comice' pear, convinces with its taste. Even if it is not one of the highest-yielding varieties, the 'Vereinsdechant' pear is a popular and often used variety both in crop cultivation and in the garden due to its resilience and the really convincing taste.
Vereinsdechantsbirne: Profile
The large fruits of the 'Doyenné du Comice' pear are ready for harvest
Appearance, taste and properties of the pear variety
The 'Vereinsdechantsbirne' has a large to very large fruit, which is very wide and bellied. The pears are often unequal. The skin is yellowish-green and often has a washed-out, reddish-brown overcolor with numerous small skin spots. The stem is short, thick, and woody, and is usually set in dull scab. Another feature is a small meat nose at the point where the stalk emerges. The flesh of the 'Vereinsdechant' pear variety is white to yellowish-white, medium-firm and really very juicy. The taste of the 'Doyenné du Comice' pear is sweet and at the same time spicy with an excellent aroma.
Doyenné du Comice: peculiarities of cultivation and care
The 'Comice' pear can be used for commercial cultivation, in extensive orchard cultivation or in the garden. The 'Doyenné du Comice' pear tree has strong to medium growth potential and is upright or wide. The crown is pyramidal with moderately branched branches. The growth strength in particular depends heavily on the substrate used, whereby quince or pear can be used as a substrate. Rootstock 'Quitte C' is very slow-growing and remains smaller than 'Quitte A'. The short rootstocks are better suited for growing in small gardens, but are often somewhat susceptible to wind, frost and some soil diseases - they should therefore only be used in the best locations. Suitable tree forms for the 'Vereinsdechantsbirne' on slow-growing quince rootstocks are the trellis, topiary trees or the wall fruit hedge. The steep-growing 'Vereinsdechantsbirne' works best in these forms, but it is also possible to purchase the pear as a half-stem or standard. If the 'Vereinsdechantsbirne' is to grow into a large tree, it is grafted on a seedling rootstock that forms a thick and strong trunk and is much more robust than the weak-growing quinces.
Tip: Grafting onto a quince hardly causes any problems at the grafting point with the 'Vereinsdechantsbirne', so that no intermediate grafting is required in contrast to other pear varieties.
The 'Doyenné du Comice' flowers in mid-late to late April and May and lasts relatively long. In addition, the flower is not very sensitive to frost. As 'Doyenné du Comice' pollinators come varieties such as 'Bosc Flaschenbirne', 'Clapps Liebling','Gellert's Butter Pear', 'Conférence', 'Williams Christ' or the 'Delicious Charneux'.
The late flowers also delight many different insects
The 'Vereinsdechantsbirne' prefers a warm location with good and not too heavy soil in your garden, as this also has a strong influence on the quality of the fruit. Soil that is too light or too heavy can be improved with a high-quality, peat-free potting soil such as our Plantura organic universal soil to increase the nutrient and water storage capacity and to support airflow. 'Doyenné du Comice' can also be grown at medium altitudes in sheltered locations.
If you want to cut the pear tree in the garden, you should make sure that the 'Vereinsdechantsbirne' tends to branch poorly. Accordingly, it is advisable to always leave several shoots for the formation of new fruit canes. The leading shoots are never shortened too much because the shoot growth of the variety is still strong enough in old age and should not be provoked any further. Rejuvenation is not necessary until late and growth is still strong enough in old age to produce fresh fruit wood again and again. Check out our special article for more tips and explanations on how to prune your pear tree.
The club dechants pear can also be cultivated as a shaped fruit
The 'Dechantbirne' is susceptible to fire blight, but only to scab in unfavorable locations. The variety is sensitive to various viral diseases, which is why it is worth buying virus-tested (vt) or virus-free (vf) plants. In addition, the flower is moderately susceptible to frost, but this is less of a problem due to the late flowering period. In addition, the tree is hardy and can withstand temperatures down to -25 °C.
The yield of the pear variety is rather low to medium-high. On sites endangered by late frost or after heavy pruning, the variety can begin to alternate, so that the yields vary greatly from year to year. However, newer varieties are now delivering more reliable yields.
Harvest and use club deans pears
The 'Vereinsdechantsbirne' is ready for harvest in mid to late October, and ready for consumption in November. This makes it one of the late autumn or winter pears. The fruits hang windproof on the tree until harvest. If they are stored in a cool place after harvesting, they can be kept well until December or January, and in cold storage even until February, and thus offer atasty winter fruit. The fruits do not wither in storage, but become doughy when overripe.
Tip: The later the 'Vereinsdechantsbirne' is harvested, the better it can develop its full aroma. On the other hand, the earlier it is harvested, the longer it can be stored.
You can often find the 'Vereinsdechantbirne' under its synonym 'Doyenné du Comice' on the market
The 'Vereinsdechantsbirne' is popular as a table pear, but can also be used excellently for compote, various desserts or pear cake.
You can find out which other well-established pear varieties there are in our variety overview.
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