Pyrus pyraster, the European wild pear, also treated as Pyrus communis subsp. pyraster, is a species of pear in the rose family Rosaceae, distributed from Western Europe to the Caucasus, though absent from Northern Europe, and now rare across much of its native range. It grows as a shrub 3 to 4 meters tall or a tree up to 15 to 20 meters, with thorny branches unlike cultivated pears, white flowers in April and May, and fruit 1 to 4 centimeters across ripening in late summer to early autumn. It tolerates most soils except strongly acidic ones and, having a weak competitive ability, tends to persist on dry or marginal sites where its taproot and need for full light are less of a disadvantage. Along with the related Pyrus caucasica, it is believed to be an ancestor of cultivated European pears, with which it remains interfertile, and individual trees can live 100 to 150 years. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
Facts
Scientific Name Sources
1. Pyrus pyraster (Wikipedia)
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