The pear remains the same.
The State Fruit of Oregon, for one thing, and the pride of Hood River County.
As in any year, conditions and results vary from place to place; the valley is uniform in its splendor but highly varied in how temperature, wind, frost and soils affect the Anjous, Bartletts, Comice and other pear varies.

These varieties make for a nice ABC of prime Hood River fruit, but the process of developing orchards and harvesting fruit is far from “alphabetical,” to borrow Irish writer John McGahern’s term for predictable simplicity.

Little is straightforward about farming pears, apples, cherries, grapes, or any other of the crops for which Hood River valley is famous. Farmers must deal with shifting factors of weather, water supplies, prices, regulations, and other market forces, labor supplies and in some areas, the health of bees.

We want to recognize the year-round hard work that goes into growing fruit. Our thanks go out to all farmers.

One of the best ways to do that is to make a point of stopping by a local fruit stand to pick up a bag or two of pears and apples. Pear Celebration on Sept. 22 is a great opportunity for this (details on page A6) but many fruit stands remain open through October. And many stores supply local fruit through the winter.

Buying local fruit directly from the orchard is one of the main blessings of living in this beautiful and abundant valley.