Pyrus spinosa (syn. Pyrus amygdaliformis), the almond-leaved pear, is a species of flowering plant in the family Rosaceae, native to the northern Mediterranean region. It has white flowers which bloom in AprilâÂÂMay. The fruits are bitter and astringent. It hybridizes easily with Pyrus communis and Pyrus pyraster.
Pyrus spinosa is a spiny shrub or small tree reaching up to about 6 m in height. Young twigs are initially covered in a dense, white woolly hair (), but become smooth and hairless () as they mature. Its leaves are narrow and variable in shapeâÂÂranging from (lanceâÂÂshaped) or (oval) to (eggâÂÂshaped with the broader end toward the tip)âÂÂand measure about 2.5âÂÂ5.0 cm long (occasionally up to 7 cm) by 1âÂÂ2 cm wide (occasionally up to 3 cm). The margin is usually (smooth) but may bear shallow, rounded teeth (crenations) near the tip. Leaves may be sessile (attached directly) or carried on short stalks () up to 2 cm long. When young, the lower surface of each leaf is whiteâÂÂvillous, later becoming smooth on both sides.
In spring, the species produces manyâÂÂflowered clusters () whose stalks and are covered in greyish, matted hairs (). Individual flowers are 2.0âÂÂ2.5 cm across, with five white surrounding a cupâÂÂshaped hypanthium.
By mid to late summer, the plant bears small pomes (pearâÂÂlike fruits) 2âÂÂ3 cm in diameter. The fruit is nearly spherical (), yellowishâÂÂbrown when ripe, and retains its lobes at the tip. Each fruit is borne singly on a stout, stiff stalk () 2âÂÂ3 cm long.
Pyrus spinosa is native to the Mediterranean region, with a core range extending through southern Europe into western Anatolia. It typically grows in dry, open forests and scrublands on wellâÂÂdrained, rocky slopes and at woodland margins, favouring elevations of where it often occurs alongside oaks and other droughtâÂÂtolerant shrubs. Although principally recorded from Europe and Anatolia, herbarium collections from two sites in western IranâÂÂclose to the Turkish border in the Zagros MountainsâÂÂconfirm its presence there, representing an eastward extension of its known distribution.