Why Are My Pears Falling Off the Tree Early?

Pears dropping from the tree before they are anywhere near ripe is a common and distressing sight. Sometimes the drop involves most of the crop; other times just a proportion falls while the rest continues developing. Understanding when in the season the drop is happening and what the fallen fruit looks like when you cut it open will tell you most of what you need to know.

The natural June drop

Pear trees routinely shed a proportion of their fruitlets in May and June, often in large numbers. This is entirely normal — the tree is self-thinning, shedding the fruitlets that were either poorly pollinated or that it cannot support given the year's resources. The remaining fruitlets continue developing normally. If the drop happens in late May to mid-June, involves pea-sized fruitlets and the tree is otherwise healthy, this is not a problem and no action is needed.

Pear midge

Pear midge (Contarinia pyrivora) causes fruitlets to blacken and fall in May, much earlier than the natural June drop. The female midge lays eggs in the blossom; the larvae feed inside the developing fruitlet, causing it to distort, blacken and drop. Cut open a fallen fruitlet in May and you will find small, creamy-white grubs inside. Collect and destroy all fallen fruitlets promptly — do not compost them, as the larvae pupate in the soil. Disturbing the soil surface under the tree in autumn exposes pupae to frost and predators.

Codling moth

Codling moth (Cydia pomonella) causes fruit to drop from midsummer onwards. The caterpillar tunnels into the core of the fruit and feeds outward, often creating an entry hole filled with brown frass. Hanging pheromone traps in the tree from May catches male moths and interrupts mating — this alone significantly reduces the number of fruit attacked. Remove and destroy all windfallen fruit promptly so that larvae do not crawl out and pupate in nearby bark or soil.

Drought stress

In hot, dry summers, pear trees under water stress will shed fruit to reduce their transpiration load. The fruit drop typically begins about six weeks after drought conditions set in. Regular deep watering during prolonged dry spells — once or twice a week rather than shallow daily watering — and a thick organic mulch around the root zone significantly reduces stress-related drop.