Common Pear Tree

The Common Pear (Pyrus communis) earns its space three times a year: white blossom in spring, real pears to pick in late summer, then warm autumn colour before the branches go bare. A grafted garden pear kept under summer pruning sits at around 5m tall and 3.5m wide, small enough for a suburban block and low enough to pick from a short ladder.

Why you'll love it

• Fruit you actually get to eat. Home grown pears are picked firm and ripened indoors, which is why they taste nothing like supermarket fruit.
• Three seasons of interest. Spring blossom, a clean summer canopy, then autumn colour before winter.
• Roots that stay out of trouble. Pear roots are non invasive, so the tree can sit closer to paths and paving than most trees this size.
• Tough, cold hardy and good for bees. Frost hardy, wind tolerant, productive in poor soil, and the blossom is heavily worked by bees.

Where it works best

Feature planting in a home orchard. One tree is a genuine focal point, with blossom and autumn colour doing as much as the fruit.

Shade tree for a small garden. At 5m by 3.5m it throws useful summer shade over a lawn, then lets winter sun through once the leaves drop.

Espalier along a fence or wall. Pears train better than almost any other fruit tree, so a narrow block can carry one flat against a wall.

Growing pears in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun, at least six hours, with shelter from strong spring winds while the blossom is out. This is a cool temperate, warm temperate and Mediterranean tree that needs real winter chill to crop. It performs in Victoria, the southern tablelands, the Adelaide Hills and cooler parts of the south west, and is a poor choice further north.

Soil. Deep, well drained soil is ideal, though pears tolerate heavier and poorer ground than most fruit trees. Keep the graft union well above soil level and mulch 75mm deep clear of the trunk.

Water and feed. Deep soak weekly through the first two summers and keep the water up while the fruit swells, since irregular watering makes small hard pears. Feed a complete fertiliser in late winter and after harvest.

Pruning and pollination. Prune in winter to build an open vase or central leader, then shorten the long summer shoots to hold the tree near 5m. Most pears crop far better with a second variety flowering nearby, so plant two if you have room.

What to expect when it arrives

Pear trees are sold in 5L, 250mm packs of three, 300mm and 400mm pots. The 5L and 250mm sizes are young grafted trees, often little more than a whip, and the value option if you will shape the tree yourself. The 300mm and 400mm trees arrive with a formed framework and a head start of a year or two.

Pears are deciduous, so a tree delivered between late autumn and early spring arrives bare of leaves. That is dormancy, not damage, and the best time to plant. Expect leaves within weeks of the weather warming and first fruit in the third to fifth year. Trees are delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95. Advanced and large stock is freighted at cost, and every tree carries our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Planting and caring for fruit trees through the seasons
• How to espalier a fruit tree against a wall
• Browse the full fruit tree range
• Compare other trees with autumn colour

Common questions

Do I need two pear trees to get fruit?

Usually, yes. Most varieties crop far more heavily with a second pear flowering at the same time nearby, so plant a pair.

Will it fruit in a warm climate?

Only where winters are genuinely cold. Pears need a real chill period to break dormancy and set fruit, so cool temperate, warm temperate and Mediterranean gardens work. Warmer ones do not.

Can I keep it smaller than 5m?

Yes. Shortening the long summer growth each year holds it at 3m, which makes picking and netting far easier.