Onward pear trees

Check pollinators >

• Picking season: Mid
• Self-fertility: Not self-fertile
• Flowering group: 4
• Awards: RHS AGM (former) 1993

Onward is an attractive yellow pear, often with an orange flush, and occasionally some russet. The flavour is of high quality and it is a reliable cropper - all in all, an excellent garden pear variety.

Onward was developed from the well-known French variety Doyenne du Comice, usually considered the best-flavoured of all pears, but somewhat fussy in its requirements. The goal was to retain the excellent flavour and texture of Comice but in a tree that was easier to grow in the UK.

 

 

Onward pear trees for sale

Pot-grown

All our pot-grown trees are grown for us to our specification by the Frank P Matthews nursery.

• PG12-year bush-trained 12L pot-grown tree, Quince A rootstock£58.75
  Large tree (3m-5m after 10 years)
  

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• PG2Premium half-standard 12L pot-grown tree, Quince A rootstock£64.50
  Large tree (3m-5m after 10 years)
  

  Out of stock
  Please try next season

Bare-root

• BR11-year bare-root tree,Quince Eline rootstock£39.75
  Medium tree (2m-3m after 10 years)
  

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• BR22-year bush-trained bare-root tree,Quince Eline rootstock£47.95
  Medium tree (2m-3m after 10 years)
  

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• BR3Cordon-trained bare-root tree,Quince Eline rootstock£49.00
  Medium tree (2m-3m after 10 years)
  

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• BR41-year bare-root tree,Quince A rootstock£38.25
  Large tree (3m-5m after 10 years)
  

  Out of stock
  Please try next season
• BR52-year bush-trained bare-root tree,Quince A rootstock£47.50
  Large tree (3m-5m after 10 years)
  

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• BR62-year half-standard bare-root tree,Quince A rootstock£48.50
  Large tree (3m-5m after 10 years)
  

  Out of stock
  Please try next season

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Need help?

Ask our fruit tree experts on 01759 392007 or fill in our contact form.

Tree specification

Photos of trees as supplied | Tree sizes and forms

Next deliveries

Delivery from week commencing 2nd February 2026 onwards.

Delivery charges

Delivery for a single tree starts at £9.95, it is calculated based on your postcode.

Growing and Training

Far easier to grow in almost every respect than Doyenne du Comice, crops are reliable and the blossom is usefully resistant to spring frosts.

The main horticultural challenge is that it can be difficult to spot when Onward pears are ripe, so you need to be alert from mid-September onwards in the UK, to make sure you pick the crop at the right time. The pears should be picked when still relatively hard and ripened in a fruit bowl, as they will not ripen correctly on the tree.

Note that contrary to what our pollination notes say, Onward will not reliably pollinate Doyenne du Comice or vice versa - they are too closely related.

History

Developed at the National Fruit Trials at Wisley, in Surrey. 1940s. It is a cross of Doyenne du Comice and an old Laxton's variety called Superb.

British-grown trees

Unlike many garden centres and online retailers, the vast majority of our fruit trees are grown in the UK. Find out more.

All our trees are certified under the Plant Healthy scheme, supervised by the Plant Health Alliance. Other stakeholders include Defra and the RHS. Find out more.

Guaranteed fruit trees

When you buy your fruit tree from Orange Pippin Fruit Trees we guarantee it for the first season in your garden while it gets established. If it doesn't grow successfully, we'll either replace it the following season or offer a refund, subject to some conditions. Find out more.