Shinseiki Asian Pear Tree for Sale - Buying & Growing Guide

Planting and Care

by Mary Van Keuren | Gardener (30+ Years Experience) – last update on June 1, 2022

Planting instructions

Although the Shinseiki Asian pear tree will tolerate partial shade, it does best when it receives more than four hours of direct light a day, so site it where it will get maximum sun. Unpot your sapling and tease out any encircling roots, which can girdle the tree and slowly kill it. Dig a hole that’s as deep as the root ball and two to three times as wide. Place the tree in the hole, and, while holding it upright and steady, fill in around it with good-quality topsoil, tamping down as you go to eliminate air pockets. Make sure that the graft union, which appears as a slight bump on the trunk near the roots, is not covered. Water thoroughly. Apply a 2- to 3-inch layer of an organic mulch, such as bark chips, around the tree’s root zone to conserve moisture and hinder weeds.

Watering and nutrients

For the tree’s first year, water every few days unless you receive rainfall. Once the tree is showing signs of robust new growth, you can taper back. A mature tree needs 1 to 2 inches of water a week. Hold off on watering once frost season approaches. Fertilize your tree as per package directions with a balanced, slow-release product that’s designed for fruit trees.

Pollination

Asian pears are primarily pollinated by honeybees and other insects. The trees are self-fertile, which means a single tree has both male and female reproductive parts. You may be able to increase your harvest, though, by planting more than one Shinseiki Asian pear tree, placing them about 15 feet apart from each other.

Pruning

Shinseiki Asian pear trees do need pruning annually. First, monitor your tree for broken, diseased, or damaged limbs, and trim these out whenever you see them. When removing a branch, cut it back to the branch collar, which is the swelling where it joins another branch, but do not cut into the collar. In early spring before bud break, trim the tree back to a central leader (main branch), with five or six strong horizontal branches spaced around the tree. Cut them back by a third. When the tree has matured, thin out the canopy each spring to allow light and air to circulate.

Pests, diseases, and animals

Watch your trees for signs of insect infestation from pests such as aphids, caterpillars, and pear midge. Keeping the ground around your tree clear of debris will make it less likely to be bothered by insects, since they have fewer places to hide. Common diseases of Asian pear trees include fire blight, pear rust, and blossom wilt. Fire blight is the most common — it causes branches, flowers, and fruit to blacken and die off. Trim back any branches that show signs of it, cutting to healthy wood. Applications of liquid copper may be an effective treatment.

Harvesting

Unlike European pears, Asian pears ripen on the tree and do not need to be stored to attain their full flavor. They are ready to harvest when they are easily pulled off the tree. A good way of knowing they are ripe is to do a simple taste test. They are best harvested by hand, and they should be stored in a cool place after harvest.

Achieving maximum results

If you’re new to growing fruit trees, you may be put off by tales of weekly spraying and multiple diseases. But it doesn’t have to be that way, and growing an Asian pear tree is no more difficult than growing, say, a lilac bush. Having said that, there are a few things you can do to ensure a successful harvest. First, once your tree has set fruit, prune out some of the smaller pears so that you’re left with only the largest and best quality fruit. Second, pruning doesn’t need to be a mysterious task. If you remember just to let the tree grow a strong central leader and trim back other branches as needed, you’ll be fine. Third, be vigilant in watching for fire blight, which can hinder your tree’s harvest and, in worst case scenarios, kill the tree. Fortunately, the Shinseiki Asian pear tree is moderately resistant to fire blight, so you will probably never see signs of it.

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Customer Reviews

Anonymous

Verified Buyer May 6, 2021 at 5:36pm

Shinseiki Asian Pear

I think it's going well.