Birch-Leaved Pear (Pyrus betulaefolia)

At a glance

Lifecycle: Perennial (hardy)
Exposure: Full sun
Frost limit: −28.9 °C

Cultivation

Prefers a good well-drained loam in full sun. Plants are hardy to at least -15°c. A fast growing tree.

Propagation

Seed - best sown in a cold frame as soon as it is ripe in the autumn, it will then usually germinate in mid to late winter. Stored seed requires 8 - 10 weeks cold stratification at 1°c and should be sown as early in the year as possible. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on in light shade in a cold frame or greenhouse for their first year. Plant them out in late spring or early summer of the following year.

Edible uses

Fruit - raw or cooked. Leaves - cooked. Flowers. The dried leaves are used to make tea.

Medicinal uses

The leaves are used in the treatment of cholera, colic and cramps. The cooked fruit is used to treat mucous diarrhoea.

Material uses

This species has long been used as a rootstock for the cultivated pears by the Chinese.