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Roots 2 Fruits
Simple bare root fruit trees and ornamental trees

Cooking pear trees

These unusual culinary pear varieties date from the 17th century, and their dense flesh makes them ideal for baking or stewing.

  • Black Worcester

    Black Worcester pear trees
    The oldest true English pear, 16th century or earlier. Ideal for stewed pears.
    • Pick season: Very late
    • Self-fertile?: Not self-fertile

  • Catillac

    Catillac pear trees
    A very old French culinary pear, dating back to the reign of Louis XIV.
    • Pick season: Late
    • Self-fertile?: Not self-fertile

How to choose Cooking pear trees

The modern dessert pear really came into its own in the Victorian era. Before that pears were mainly used for cookery, and typically had a very hard dense flesh which was softened in stewing or baking. We still have some of these old-fashioned pear varieties, and they make an interesting addition to the kitchen garden.