Article from Bean's Trees and Shrubs Hardy in the British Isles
Recommended citation
'Pyrus nivalis' from the website Trees and Shrubs Online (treesandshrubsonline.
A small tree, sturdy in habit; young shoots thickly covered with a white wool. Leaves oval or obovate, 2 to 3 in. long, 3⁄4 to 11⁄4 in. wide, entire, covered when young on both sides, but especially beneath, with a white wool much of which falls away later. Flowers pure white, 11⁄2 in. across, produced in April in conspicuous clusters. Fruit roundish, 11⁄2 in. or more wide, yellowish green, borne on a stalk as long or longer than itself.
Native of Central and S.E. Europe from Austria and Hungary to Rumania and Greece; introduced early in the 19th century. It is a very beautiful tree early in the season, owing to its pure white leaves and abundant flowers. There is an example at Kew measuring 39 × 41⁄2 ft (1970).
Synonyms
Poirier Sauger