The best pear trees to grow in the UK
Pears are amongst the most desirable of all orchard fruits, with their characteristic sweet flavours. Most of the varieties we know today arose in the first half of the 19th century, when there was an explosion of interest among amateur and professional growers in raising new varieties, particularly in Belgium, France, and England. The aim was to achieve a buttery soft flesh and exquisite rich flavour.
Pears can be a bit more demanding to grow than apples or plums, but the pear varieties we have selected for this list are all particularly easy to grow, and should be productive in most locations - but always plant in full sun for the best results.
Remember, pears can't usually be eaten straight from the tree, instead pick them just before they are ripe, and then place them in a fruit bowl for a few days.
1st Conference
Buy Conference pear trees for eating fresh hereConference is the most popular of all the pear trees we sell. It is a traditional English variety, and well-suited to the UK climate. It is also reliably self-fertile, which means you won't need another pear tree nearby to pollinate it - so if you only have space for one pear tree it is a great choice.
Don't be put off planting a Conference pear tree just because you can get these pears in the supermarket - home grown ones taste just as good, and Conference has good disease-resistance so you probably won't need to spray or use chemicals.
2nd Concorde
Buy Concorde pear trees for eating fresh hereConcorde is a modern English pear variety. It marries the reliable qualities of our traditional Conference pears with the sweet flavours of the French variety Doyenne du Comice - often considered the best-flavoured of all pears.
Like Conference, Concorde is reliably self-fertile and productive. It does best in a warm sunny sheltered location.
3rd Williams
Buy Williams pear trees for eating fresh hereWilliams is one of the oldest traditional English pears, first discovered in the 18th century. It ripens early in the pear season - late August or early September.
Williams is a naturally heavy-cropping pear, and quite easy to grow. It does best in drier climates, but should be productive even in cooler regions, so it is a good choice for gardeners in the north of the UK.
Williams is also reasonably self-fertile, so you don't need another compatible pear tree nearby in order to get a crop. However if you have another pear variety nearby, such as Conference or Beth, you will get a bigger crop.
4th Beth
Buy Beth pear trees for eating fresh hereBeth is a classic English pear variety, developed at the famous East Malling Research Station in the 1930s. It is related to the Williams pear, but arguably has a better flavour.
Beth is easy to grow and suitable for most areas of the UK, although for best results a sunny sheltered location is preferred.
Beth is not self-fertile, so you will need another different pear tree nearby to pollinate it - Conference is a good choice.
5th Invincible
Buy Invincible pear trees for eating fresh hereInvincible is a modern pear variety from France. It is popular in the UK because it tolerates less-than-perfect growing conditions - although as with all pears a bit of sun and warmth always helps.
A particular benefit of Invincible is that it will often set a crop even if some of the blossom is damaged by late frosts.
Invincible is also partially self-fertile, so you can expect to get some pears even if there are no other pear trees in nearby gardens.
