Waterville Pear Tree | Bare Root, Zone 3

Waterville Pear (Spring 2027)

$39.99

Reliable shipping

Flexible returns

Pollination Needs a partner

Bloom group 4 of 7 (Mid)

See trees that will pollenize it Pear Pollination Map

Ripening

Will it finish before your first hard freeze?

Check it on the Ripening Map (opens in a new tab)

Disease resistanceNo strong resistance

Fire blight : Unknown, no published data yet
Pear scab : Susceptible, 2 of 5

Scored 1 to 5. Higher resists better, and ? means no published data yet.

See it on our pear disease chart (opens in a new tab)

At a glance: Waterville Pear is a pear tree rated hardy to zone 3 in our ratings (winters to -40°F), not self-fertile, so it needs a different variety nearby as a pollenizer (bloom group 4 of 7, mid for a European pear), and it ripens about Sep 15 to Sep 27 in Missoula (picked and dated at our place in Missoula).

Hardy to	Zone 3 to 8. A bare number means the whole of zone 3, colder half included (winters to -40°F). Find your zone with our cold hardiness calculator.
Chill hours	About 800 hours (600 to 1,100). Our estimate. No published figure exists for this variety yet. Montana winters give it plenty. In milder climates, make sure your winters average at least this much. Check your chill hours or see our sources.
Pollination	Needs Cross-Pollination. Bloom group 4 of 7 (mid), mid spring here. Waterville is not self-fertile. Bartlett, Flemish Beauty, Karl's Favorite or Seckel make good partners, but do not rely on Bartlett and Seckel to pollenize each other. Good partners we carry: Bartlett Pear, Flemish Beauty Pear, Seckel Pear, Karl's Favorite Pear and 29 more. Bloom group is our estimate from the variety's origin and relatives. Pear Pollination Map.
Ripens	About Sep 15 to Sep 27 in Missoula (picked and dated off our own trees). Real years swing about a week either way. See the date for your town.
Rootstock and size	OHxF 87: semi-dwarf, about 14 to 19 ft tall unpruned. The most precocious OHxF stock. Pyrus communis: full size, about 18 to 25 ft tall unpruned. European pear seedling. Plant about 20 ft apart. Our rootstock guide.
Good for	Fresh eating (8/10). Scores are our own 1 to 10 ratings; 8 and up makes our Best Of lists.
Deer	Sometimes damaged by deer.
What you get	Bare root, 2-4 ft or 4-6 ft or 3-5 ft or 5-7 ft. Shipped or picked up in Missoula in spring, roots wrapped in moist sawdust. Guaranteed to bud out.

Overview

Waterville is a fairly cold-climated adapted European pear (Pyrus communis) originally associated with Waterville, Vermont, known for producing large, very juicy fruit with notably sweet flavor and a bit of classic “European pear” texture (slightly coarse).

Origin and History

Waterville is a local Vermont pear—discovered/rediscovered in Waterville, VT and then introduced more widely through Elmore Roots Nursery. Parentage is not documented in the sources describing the variety.

Fruit & Uses

Fruit size & texture: Large; very juicy; sweet; often described as slightly coarse-textured (not uncommon in hardy dessert pears).

Flavor: Sweet, good dessert quality.

Season: The pears come on mid-late September in the Bitterroot Valley, MT.

Uses: Fresh eating, but also noted as good in tarts, although we never tried Waterville in a tart.

Growth Habit

Waterville is very vigorous and benefits from training/spreading limbs early rather than heavy pruning right out of the gate.

Spacing

Our 2027 Waterville pears are grafted onto standard, Pyrus communis rootstock (these are actually one year older as they were grafted in 2025 and grew out for two years), are full vigor, and should be spaced about 20 ft. apart. We also have Waterville pears that we bench grafted onto OHxF 87 semi-dwarf (75% standard) in Spring 2026. OHxF will be less vigorous than P. communis and can be planted 15 ft. apart. Can be spaced closer for a more rigorous pruning regiment or further apart in a less managed situation.

Pollination

Like most pears, Waterville is not self-fertile and needs a pollenzer, i.e. another variety for pollination.Examples of what we offer that will serve as a pollination partner include Bartlett, Flemish Beauty, Karl's Favorite, Johantorp, and Seckel.

Cold hardiness

In our experience in Montana, Waterville pear has been surviving in a fairly cold spot in the Bitterroot—particularly Stevensville, MT—and the tree experienced -38°F on 1/13/24 without showing any signs of winter injury. It very well may survive colder than -40°F, but we simply do not have that data yet. As such, we are listing Waterville as a solid Zone 3a pear based on our experience in Montana.

Questions we get about Waterville Pear

Does Waterville Pear need a pollenizer?

Yes. Waterville Pear needs pollen from a different variety that blooms at about the same time. Waterville is not self-fertile. Bartlett, Flemish Beauty, Karl's Favorite or Seckel make good partners, but do not rely on Bartlett and Seckel to pollenize each other. Partners we carry include Bartlett Pear, Flemish Beauty Pear, Seckel Pear.

How cold hardy is Waterville Pear?

We rate Waterville Pear hardy to zone 3, which means winters down to about -40°F. Our ratings come from real winters at our two Montana sites and from trusted growers across the North, not from a catalog average.

How many chill hours does Waterville Pear need?

About 800 hours of winter chill (we count hours at or below 45°F), likely somewhere between 600 and 1,100. Nobody has published a chill figure for it, so that's our estimate from its relatives and origin. Our chill hours guide has a calculator for your winters, and our research page lists the sources.

When does Waterville Pear ripen?

About Sep 15 to Sep 27 in Missoula, Montana (picked and dated off our own trees). Warmer places run earlier and cooler places later; our ripening map converts the date to your town.

How big does Waterville Pear get?

We graft Waterville Pear onto OHxF 87 (semi-dwarf), which makes a tree roughly 14 to 19 ft tall if you never prune it. Some sizes are on Pyrus communis. Plant about 20 ft apart.

What is Waterville Pear good for?

Our top use scores for Waterville Pear are fresh eating (8/10). Anything scored 8 or higher makes our Best Of lists.

Is Waterville Pear disease resistant?

No. It's prone to pear scab. Nobody has published solid data on it for fire blight yet, so we list that as unknown. Our pear disease resistance chart has every rating, the notes and the sources.

Will deer eat Waterville Pear?

Sometimes. Deer browse Waterville Pear now and then, so protect young plants where deer pressure is high.

Juice data

SG (Brix)	Acid g/L	Tannin g/L	pH
1.055 (13.5) E	3.0 E	0.3 E	not published

Letters show how solid each number is: M measured, P published but weaker, E our estimate.

No juice test found for this pear; numbers are our estimate.

Run Waterville Pear through the hard cider calculator to see what it does in a blend.

More Plants Like This

By Zone

Zone 3 Pear Trees

Best For

Best Pears for Fresh Eating

Pollination, Bloom & Ripening

Mid-Season Pear Trees

Browse

Fruit Trees Under $40 Mid-Blooming Pear Trees Pear Trees

Pollination partners

Trees that will pollenize Waterville Pear

Waterville Pear needs a different European pear nearby to set fruit. Every tree below blooms at the same time and has pollen that works for it. Plant partners within about 100 feet.

Bloom group 4 of 7 (Mid)

Pollination Needs a partner

Pollen Not tested yet

33 trees we carry will pollenize it. 23 in stock now.