Pyrus communis, L.

13. P. communis L. View in CoL , Sp. Pl. 479, 1200 (1753) View Cited Treatment .

Tree up to 20 m; branches with or without spines, ascending on young and spreading on adult trees. Twigs stout, reddish-brown, soon becoming glabrous and shining. Leaves 5-8 x 3-5—5- 5 cm, ovate and elliptical, more or less cuspidate at apex, crenulate-serrulate to subentire, usually glabrous at maturity; petiole equalling or shorter than lamina. Corymbs and leaves tomentose when unfolding. Sepals 6-8 x 3-4 mm, lanceolate-acuminate. Petals 12-14 x 10-12 mm, obovate. Fruit (5—)6—16 x 4-12 cm, oblong, pyriform, turbinate or subglobose, with a sweet taste; calyx persistent. Cultivated on a field scale in most of Europe except the north and the drier regions of the south.

More than a thousand cultivars of the garden pear are known. It is of hybrid origin, and many species are considered to be among its parents, including 4, 7, 9, 11 and 12.