In most ordinary circumstances, a business going belly up would spell better sales for close competitors. But fruit harvesting is no ordinary Oregon business, and as pear growers and their workers in Hood River Valley this month continue to pick, ship and store 2026’s bounty, they’re worried orchards that are no longer productive could further threaten an already precarious enterprise. Abandoned and neglected orchards, especially ones that abut the properties of working farmers, spread pear pests and diseases, harming other people’s crops and further driving down already abysmal prices, growers say. Read more at the link in our bio. 📷: Gosia Wozniacka #oregon #agriculture #pear #pearharvest #pearseason #theoregonian