Pyrus pyraster

Pyrus pyraster is a deciduous plant reaching in height as medium-sized shrub and as a tree. Unlike the cultivated form, the branches have thorns. Under good growing conditions, wild pear trees have a remarkably slender form with a characteristic rising crown. In less favourable conditions they show other characteristic growth forms, such as one-sided or extremely low crowns. ==Distribution==

The distribution of wild pear ranges from Western Europe to the Caucasus. It does not appear in Northern Europe. The wild pear has become quite rare. It is sympatric with Pyrus elaeagrifolia. It may hybridize with other pears, producing, for example, Pyrus austriaca in a cross with Pyrus nivalis. ==Habitat==

Wild pear can grow on almost all soils, except the most acidic ones. However, owing to its weak competitive ability, the species exists mostly on extreme or marginal sites. Its tap roots enable it to grow on very dry soils. The tree requires a lot of light and is often found in the open landscape. ==Wild pears in Britain==

The "wild pears" of England and Wales are actually thought to be domesticates that escaped cultivation. They appear to be archaeophytes, with charcoal and carbonised pips having been found at several Neolithic sites and are occasionally mentioned in medieval documents. It is likely that pears spread to Britain after their domestication with early farmers and subsequently escaped into the wild. Its establishment in the British Isles is probably due to human migration, with the trees belonging to one of the Pyrus communis subspecies instead of the true wild pear species of P. pyraster, which is native to much of continental Europe but absent from Britain. Another species of pear found wild in South West England, the Plymouth pear (Pyrus cordata), is now thought to have originated from hedging plants imported from Brittany. ==Gallery==

File:Rosaceae - Pyrus pyraster-2.JPG|Shrub of Pyrus pyraster File:Wild Pear Tree in full blossom.JPG|Pyrus pyraster in full blossom File:Wild Pear Flowers detail.JPG|Close-up on flowers of Pyrus pyraster File:Rosaceae - Pyrus pyraster - Perastro.JPG|Fruits Pyrus pyraster File:Rosaceae - Pyrus pyraster.JPG|Fruits of Pyrus pyraster File:Rosaceae - Pyrus pyraster-1.JPG|Leaves of Pyrus pyraster File:Wildbirne Stammdetail, Pyrus pyraster.jpg|Bark of Pyrus pyraster ==Notes==