About

Pears are a genus of trees, Pyrus , in the family Rosaceae, that bear an edible apple-like fruit of the same name. Several species of pears are cultivated for their fruit and juices, while others are grown as ornamental flowering trees.

Pear trees are mostly medium to small-sized, though some grow as shrubs. They grow in temperate regions, being native to Asia and distributed across Europe and the mountains of North Africa. The wood of pear trees is a preferred material in the manufacture of high-quality woodwind instruments and furniture.

How to grow it

According to Pear Bureau Northwest, about 3,000 known varieties of pears are grown worldwide. The pear is normally propagated by grafting a selected variety onto a rootstock, which may be of a pear or quince variety. Quince rootstocks produce smaller trees, which is often desirable in commercial orchards or domestic gardens. For new varieties the flowers can be cross-bred to preserve or combine desirable traits. The fruit of the pear is produced on spurs, which appear on shoots more than one year old.

There are four species which are primarily grown for edible fruit production: the European pear Pyrus communis subsp. communis cultivated mainly in Europe and North America, the Chinese white pear (bai li) Pyrus × bretschneideri, the Chinese pear Pyrus ussuriensis, and the Nashi pear Pyrus pyrifolia (also known as Asian pear or apple pear), which are grown mainly in eastern Asia. There are thousands of cultivars of these three species. A species grown in western China, P. sinkiangensis, and P. pashia, grown in southern China and south Asia, are also produced to a lesser degree.

Other Pyrus plants

Birch Leaf Pear · Pyrus boissieriana · Chinese White Pear · Callery Pear · European Pear · Snow Pear · Pyrus phaeocarpa · Chinese pear · Pyrus regelii · Willow Leaved Pear