The American pear is also known as the Indian pear and develops edible, brown tubers underground. With us you will learn everything about the earth pear, its cultivation and use.
The vigorous earth pear develops numerous subterranean rhizome bulbs with a delicious taste. We introduce you to the creeper and give tips on growing, harvesting and preparing the pear.
Earth pear: origin and properties
The earth pear (Apios americana), also called Indian pear, cinnamon wine or Apios, belongs, just like bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) and Pea (Pisum sativum), to the legume family (Fabaceae). It originally comes from North America and is also widespread there. The natives of North America, but also the first settlers from Europe, used the pear as a protein-rich food source.
The climbing plant, which grows to a height of around 300 cm, is reminiscent of pole beans. In exceptional cases, the earth pear can even reach a height of 600 cm. It sprout in April and dies in late autumn. The leaves of the pear grow up to 20 cm long, are imparipinnate and composed of five or seven oval to lanceolate leaflets. The spicy-scented Indian pear blossoms appear quite late in the year from July to September. The typically shaped butterfly flowers are clustered together and show up in soft red, reddish-brown, pink or burgundy coloring. The seeds, arranged in long, thin pods, are also reminiscent of pole beans. They are round to kidney-shaped, mottled with brown to violet, and mature in autumn.
The earth pear is perennial and hardy, it dies above ground in late autumn and overwinters in the form of fleshy rhizome tubers, which are formed in a row along the roots like pearls. These outlasting organs are the actual earth pears. On average, they are about the size of a chestnut, but can occasionally reach a diameter of up to 20 cm. The outside of the oval to lemon-shaped tubers has a reddish-brown skin, the inside is white. The extremely aromatic andThe sweet taste of the pear can best be described as a mixture of hazelnuts, chestnuts and roasted sweet potatoes.
Erdbirne und Jerusalem artichoke: Jerusalem artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus) is also popularly known as "erd pear". However, the tall perennial is closely related to the sunflower (Helianthus annuus) and does not look like the pear at all. The underground storage tubers of the Jerusalem artichoke, on the other hand, look quite similar to the earth pear, but are often much larger and usually have several knobby branches.
Plant pear
Due to their climbing growth, ground pears are particularly suitable for greening fences, pergolas and trellises. They prefer a moderately moist, well-drained and loose as well as slightly sandy to loamy soil. In terms of pH, the papillae is very adaptable, it even tolerates extremely acidic soils. The location should be sunny to semi-shady. Either the bulbs or seeds of the earthen pear can be planted. The seeds of the Apios are cold germs, so they only germinate after a longer period of cold. After cold treatment, they are grown indoors from February and placed outside as young plants from April. The rhizome tubers are planted about 5 cm deep and planted 80 to 100 cm apart in the soil in autumn from October or in early spring from the beginning of March and watered well. Earth pears can also be cultivated on the terrace and balcony in a pot with a capacity of at least 5 liters. Good water drainage is important here in order to avoid waterlogging. The plant starts sprouting in April. Freshly planted pear bulbs usually only bloom in the second year. The tubers should not be harvested in the first year so as not to weaken the plant.
Summary: plant a pear
- Soil: moderately moist, well-drained, loose, slightly sandy to loamy
- Location: sun to partial shade
- Plant seeds: start indoors from February and plant outdoors from April
- Plant tubers: From October (or from early March); plant 5 cm deep in the ground; Planting distance 80 - 100 cm
Care for Apios americana
The earth pear requires little maintenance other than regular watering. A good climbing frame is particularly important for the creeper. In the fall diesthe above-ground part of the plant and can be cut back in spring before new growth. Since the pear is hardy, its tubers do not have to be dug up, but can remain in the ground during the winter. Potted bulbs should be placed in a frost-free, cool location during the winter and should only be watered very sparingly during this time.
Like all legumes, the pear supplies itself with nitrogen. Small, round nodules sit on their roots, in which nitrogen-fixing bacteria that live in symbiosis with the plant nest. However, fertilization makes sense, since not only nitrogen but also other nutrients such as phosphorus and potassium are necessary for he althy growth. In addition, perennial plants can run out of soil nutrients after a few years. The first signs of this are a sparse blossom base, very small or few earthen pear tubers or acute deficiency symptoms such as yellowing of the leaves. For a good yield and he althy plants, we recommend the regular use of a predominantly organic long-term fertilizer - such as our Plantura organic tomato fertilizer. The fertilizer granules are worked in around the surface of the plant when it starts sprouting in April and provides a long-term supply of essential nutrients.
Propagate earth pear
Earth Pears can be propagated from seeds or rhizomes. The seeds form in long, thin legumes after flowering. As soon as the plant dies, the pods can be harvested and left to dry indoors for a few weeks. If you can already hear the seeds rustling inside, remove the pods and store them in a dry, dark and cool place.
Alternatively, the cold germs can also be sown directly in autumn in order to break down the germ-inhibiting substances over the winter. In some places, however, earthen pears do not form seeds, so vegetative propagation must be used here. The propagation of the earth pear via its tasty tubers is much faster and easier. To do this, dig up the tubers in autumn or spring when the ground is frost-free and move them to a new location.
Harvesting and preparation of the earthen pear
Pears can be harvested all winter long.
However, always leave a few tubers in the ground for future harvest. Unharvested earth pears continue to grow, getting bigger and bigger. A single earth pear plant canyield around 2 kg at peak development. Frost-free weather and a digging fork are ideal for harvesting the earthen pears. The tubers can be stored unwashed, cool and dry for several weeks, but they will gradually lose moisture. Ground pears are first washed well, peeled if necessary and prepared as desired. You can eat them raw or cooked. All cooking methods for potatoes can easily be converted into earth pear recipes. Apios can be boiled, fried or roasted, they can be processed into potato pancakes or casseroles. Whole dried tiger pears can be ground up and used like tigernuts (Cyperus esculentus) to thicken soups or as a nutritious additive in muesli and porridge. The high protein content of around 17% makes the pear a filling side dish. The seeds of the pear can also be boiled and prepared like beans.The peanut (Arachis hypogeae) also belongs to the legumes and is related to the earth pear. You can find out how you can grow the legume in your own garden with us.