The common pear, native to a broad area from Europe to northern Iraq, is a deciduous tree in the rose family (Rosaceae). It grows 40 to 50 feet tall and 25 to 35 feet wide and produces the familiar, teardrop-shaped, edible fruit seen in stores. Many cultivars are available with varying sizes, shapes and colors of fruit. The epithet is Latin for “common.” This tree needs full sun but can grow in most types of well-drained soil and will even tolerate occasionally dry soil. The tree is usually grafted onto a dwarfing rootstock to maintain a shorter, more manageable tree. Fruit production is best when two or more varieties are planted together as reciprocal pollinizers. Propagation is by grafting. Here is an NC State guide to caring for fruit trees, including dealing with insects and diseases. The flowers of the common pear attract butterflies, bees and flies. The trees attract songbirds. Plant it in a lawn, meadow or edible garden. Insects, Diseases and Other Plant Problems: Susceptible to fireblight, anthracnose, canker, scab and powdery mildew. Insect visitors include pear psylla, coddling moth and borers. VIDEO Created by Laura Barth for "Vegetables, Herbs, Fruits, and Nuts," a plant identification course developed in partnership with Longwood Gardens.
Curated pairwise relationships between this plant and others in the library — who feeds
whom, who competes, who confuses the pests. Green reads as a good pairing, red as one to avoid.
No curated interactions recorded for this species yet.
Also noted by NC State
Related species the NC State Plant Toolbox flags for this plant — look-alikes to tell
apart, and plants that play a similar role in a planting. Ones we carry in the library are linked.
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
Soil texture
Clay; Loam (Silt); Sand
Soil pH
Neutral (6.0-8.0)
Soil drainage
Good Drainage | Occasionally Dry
Available space
12-24 feet
NC region
Coastal; Mountains; Piedmont
Mature size
Height: 40 ft. 0 in. - 50 ft. 0 in. | Width: 25 ft. 0 in. - 35 ft. 0 in.
Maintenance
High
Canopy layer
1 - Canopy (>40 ft)
Form & Appearance
Habit / form
Erect; Spreading
Texture
Medium
Foliage
Deciduous
Leaf color
Green
Leaf type
Simple
Leaf arrangement
Alternate
Leaf shape
Oblong; Ovate
Leaf margin
Serrate
Leaf feel
Glossy; Smooth
Leaf size
1-3 inches long, 1-3 inches wide
Hairs present
No
Leaf detail
1-4 inch long green, oval, alternate leaves with serrated edges. Yellow fall color.
Fall color
Gold/Yellow
Flower color
Gold/Yellow; White
Flower value
Showy
Flower form
Corymb
Flower shape
Cup; Saucer
Flower size
1-3 inches
Flower detail
White flowers with all parts in fives in clusters in the spring.
Bloom time
Spring
Fruit color
Brown/Copper; Gold/Yellow; Green; Red/Burgundy
Fruit type
Pome
Fruit value
Edible; Fragrant
Fruit size
> 3 inches long, > 3 inches wide
Fruit detail
Variable fruit sizes, shapes, and colors. Teardrop shapes are most commonly known.
Bark color
Light Gray
Bark detail
The bark is smooth and gray with lenticels becoming blocky or furrowed with age.
Stem color
Brown/Copper; Gray/Silver
Stem detail
Young twigs are glossy reddish-brown, often developing a scaly, grey-brown, and slightly furrowed bark as they mature. i produces numerous dwarf shoots on older wood, needed for fruiting.
Wildlife & Ecology
Native status
Non-native
Origin
Europe to N. Iraq
Attracts
Bees; Butterflies; Pollinators; Songbirds
Food & Medicine
Edible parts
Fruit
Harvest time
Fall; Summer
Fruit type
Pome
Edibility
Fruits edible raw, cooked, or dried. Sweet and fragrant.
Landscape Use
Landscape location
Lawn; Meadow
Landscape theme
Edible Garden; English Garden; Pollinator Garden
Design feature
Flowering Tree
Garden tags
#edible garden #flowering tree #edible fruits #pomes #fruit tree #white flowers #disease problems #ebh-fn #vhfn-f #vhfn #hortcontest #edible #th-taste #th-wildlife
Problems & Resistance
Insect problems
Fruit Development; Wood Boring Beetles in Trees
Disease problems
Anthracnose diseases of trees; Disease and Insect Management in the Home Orchard