Korean Sun Pear

Korean Sun Pear (Pyrus fauriei 'Westwood') is the ornamental pear for gardens that cannot take a 10m tree. It holds a naturally rounded canopy at about 4m tall and 3.5m wide without shaping, covers itself in white blossom in early spring, and finishes the season in vivid orange and red. Most ornamental pears are avenue trees for big blocks. This one is scaled for a front garden.

Why you'll love it

• Compact by nature, not by pruning. It stops at roughly 4m by 3.5m on its own, so you are not fighting a large tree into a small space every winter.
• Two seasons of real display. Clean white blossom across bare branches in early spring, then vivid orange and red leaf colour as the weather cools.
• Roots that behave, fruit that does not drop. The root system is non-invasive and the fruit is tiny and not eaten, so it suits a driveway or footpath.
• Tough where it counts. Frost hardy, wind tolerant, drought tolerant and content in poor soil.

Where it works best

Feature planting. A rounded 4m tree is the scale a front lawn or courtyard wants: enough presence to anchor the space, not enough to shade the house by year ten.

Small gardens. Allow about 2m from a wall or fence so the canopy rounds out on all sides. It gives blossom and autumn colour without outgrowing a narrow block.

Driveways and avenues. For a matched row, plant about 4m apart, slightly wider than the mature canopy, so each crown stays distinct.

Growing Korean Sun Pear in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun gives the heaviest blossom and strongest autumn colour. It is a tree for cool temperate, warm temperate and Mediterranean gardens, and being frost hardy it handles genuine cold.

Soil. Tolerant of poor soil, but not of waterlogging. Dig wide rather than deep, work compost through the backfill, and on heavy clay plant on a raised mound. Mulch 75mm deep, held back from the trunk.

Water and feed. Deep soak once or twice a week through the first two summers, then reduce as it settles into being drought tolerant. Apply a complete slow release fertiliser in late winter before bud burst.

Pruning. Very little. The rounded shape is natural, so the job is limited to removing damaged or crossing branches in winter. Avoid hard pruning, which spoils the symmetry that makes this variety worth planting.

What to expect when it arrives

This tree is grown in one size, a 45L pot, which is advanced stock rather than a starter plant. It arrives with a formed trunk and real height on day one, so it looks like a tree from the first season. That size and weight is why advanced and large stock is freighted at cost.

Being deciduous, a tree despatched through winter arrives bare or with very few leaves, which is normal and the kindest time of year for it to travel. Expect roughly 30 to 50cm of growth a year once the roots are away. Plants are delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95 and a minimum order of $300 before delivery. Every plant is covered by our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Compare the ten best ornamental pear varieties
• Browse the full ornamental tree range
• Trees suited to driveways and avenue planting
• Plants scaled for small gardens

Common questions

How is it different from the common ornamental pears?

Size and shape. Most are tall and upright, reaching 8m to 12m, while Korean Sun holds a rounded crown at about 4m tall and 3.5m wide. Choose it for blossom and autumn colour at a domestic scale.

Does it produce fruit I need to clean up?

The fruit is tiny and not eaten, so there is no meaningful drop to sweep off paving or a driveway. That is one of the reasons it suits planting near hard surfaces.

Will I get good autumn colour where I live?

In cool temperate, warm temperate and Mediterranean gardens, yes: the display is genuinely vivid orange and red, and the cooler your autumn nights the stronger it gets. In subtropical and tropical gardens expect it to be muted.