Yes — Strong Match
pear (zones 4-8) covers every zone Kansas contains (5b-7a), so hardiness is not what limits it anywhere in the state.
Pear in Kansas — the short answer
Pear in Kansas: hardy in zones 4–8, full sun, against a state median of ~208 frost-free days.
- Plant zones
- 4-8
- Manual horticultural correction (source not retained); NC State Extension and Missouri Botanical Garden, with the remaining rows from other published sources or Growable Ground compilation
- Kansas zones
- 5b-7a
- USDA PHZM 2023
- Frost window
- Apr 1 - Apr 12 – Oct 25 - Nov 3
- NOAA RCC ACIS 1991-2020, 28°F
- Shortest county season
- 177 days
- NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020, county 28°F killing freeze
- Days to maturity
- 1460 days
- Growable Ground Plant Database
Plant data: Growable Ground Plant Database, compiled from FAO ECOCROP, USDA PLANTS and university Extension sources — per-field provenance varies and is published with the dataset.
Your yard isn't the whole zone.
Kansas spans zones 5b-7a, but your yard sits in exactly one — and slope, tree cover, and cold-air pockets nudge it further. Enter your address and we'll score pear against your parcel's actual hardiness, soil, and sun.
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Kansas is not one climate
Kansas’s winter-low ladder runs across 105 counties, from zone 6 in Atchison County to zone 7 in Wilson County. That is 10°F between the two counties’ average coldest night — the difference between pear overwintering in the ground and coming under cover.
The middle half of 105 counties runs 6–6.5 zones, with a median of 6.5 zones — a 1-zone span end to end.
Measured across 105 Kansas counties. USDA PHZM 2023, per county. Quartiles are order statistics — every figure shown is a value a real county recorded, not an interpolation. Your own site sits somewhere inside this range; a parcel report resolves where.
Where in Kansas Fits Best
Even within Kansas's zones 5b-7a, county microclimates differ enough to change what thrives. These counties carry the closest zone match for pear (USDA PHZM 2023):
Zone Comparison
Pear Needs
- USDA Zones: 4-8
- Frost-Free Days: 180+
- Sun: Full Sun
- Mature size: 30 ft tall
- Picking window: ~60 days of harvest
- Drought tolerance: Low
Kansas Has
- USDA Zones: 5b-7a
- Last Hard Freeze (28°F): Apr 1 - Apr 12
- First Hard Freeze (28°F): Oct 25 - Nov 3
- Annual Rainfall: 16-42 inches
- Common Soils: Prairie loam, Silt loam, Clay
Plant Zone Range (zones 4-8)
Preferred Soil pH
Plant data: Growable Ground Plant Database, compiled from FAO ECOCROP, USDA PLANTS, and university Extension sources — per-field provenance varies and is published with the dataset. State data: USDA ARS PHZM 2023, NOAA Climate Normals, NRCS SSURGO.
When to Plant Pear in Kansas
The frost window
Across Kansas, the last spring hard freeze (28°F) clears between Apr 1 and Apr 12, and the first fall hard freeze lands between Oct 25 and Nov 3 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Counting from the latest last freeze to the earliest first freeze, that's a 196-day window you can count on — up to 216 days on a mild site in a kind year. That marks the hard freeze, not the last light frost, so tender transplants usually wait another 2-3 weeks.
Winter standing
Kansas runs as cold as USDA zone 5, and no sourced winter-hardiness floor is on record for pear, so this page does not state whether it overwinters here — and gives no fall establishment date on the strength of a guess. Whether pear is a permanent planting or a replant-every-spring crop for you turns on your own zone within Kansas; check its hardiness range against that before treating it as long-lived ground.
Frost window: NOAA Climate Normals 1991-2020. Plant timing fields: Growable Ground Plant Database — frost-free days from FAO ECOCROP, days to harvest from university Extension production guides, and growing-degree-day and chill-hour minimums that are compilation estimates rather than published figures. Your site's own frost dates can run earlier or later than the state range — a parcel report pins them down.
Growing Season Fit
The zone check says pear survives winter here. Whether the season is long enough — and warm enough — is a different question.
Frost-free days
Pear wants 180+ frost-free days; a typical Kansas site sees ~208 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). That leaves a workable window — start indoors to bank time.
Growing degree days
Pear needs ~2000 GDD (base 50°F) to ripen. The state median runs ~3821 GDD (from PRISM 1991-2020 climate normals), so Kansas's typical season clears that easily.
Chill hours
Pear requires ~600 chill hours (32-45°F dormancy window). Kansas typically banks ~2500 chill hours per winter (from PRISM 1991-2020 climate normals), which keeps this plant on track.
GDD and chill-hour figures are computed from PRISM 1991-2020 monthly climate normals; frost-free days from NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020. Each is the state median across its counties (P25/P75 span the within-state spread). Hardiness-zone range is USDA PHZM 2023.
Soil + Drainage Fit
Pear tolerates a wide pH range (pH 4.5-8.3) — 3.8 units, acid ground through alkaline — so soil acidity is rarely what limits it in Kansas. A soil test is still worth having, but for what else it tells you about this site, not to clear this plant. It will grow across that whole span, but it does best between pH 5.5 and 6.5 — worth knowing before you decide whether a Kansas soil test result is a problem or just a number. Drainage matters: this plant wants well (dry spells). If your Kansas site is heavier clay or sits in a low spot, raised beds or amendment with compost solve it.
Plant pH requirements: FAO ECOCROP and USDA PLANTS, with the remaining rows from other published sources or Growable Ground compilation. Drainage: FAO ECOCROP, with the remaining rows from other published sources or Growable Ground compilation. Kansas soil profile from USDA NRCS SSURGO. Site-specific verification: a 30-minute soil test from your local Extension lab.
Before you plant pear for food
Anything you grow to eat takes up what is in the ground it grows in, so what is on record near you is worth knowing before pear goes in. What follows is Kansas’s documented federal record at state scale — a screening signal, not a soil test, and not a statement about any one lot.
Safe to Grow Here?
What the federal record shows across Kansas — and how to grow with it.
We checked the federal record across Kansas — 33,298 documented sites across 8 of the 9 source types we track.
The most significant on record: 146 Superfund sites. Sites tracked in EPA's Superfund program — from assessment-stage CERCLIS entries to confirmed National Priorities List cleanup sites.
Kansas carries one of the heavier federal records we track — and that's not a verdict on your yard. Proximity to a documented site is information, not a diagnosis: nothing here says any particular parcel is affected. It does earn one concrete step — before food beds go in the ground, a professional soil test tells you exactly what you're working with, and raised beds with clean imported soil grow well almost anywhere in the meantime.
Severity Distribution
across Kansas
Highest-Severity Sites
A note from Gnorman
What an experienced grower watches for around here
In and around Kansas, two things run higher than the national average across Kansas — Nitrate (15,878 sites) and CAFO (485 sites). That's not a problem with your land — it's information about it.
Nitrate: Nitrate contamination primarily comes from agricultural fertilizer runoff and failing septic systems.
CAFO: CAFOs pose a different contamination profile than chemical sources.
Test well water for nitrate if you rely on a private well for irrigation (EPA standard: 10 mg/L).
Wash all produce consumed raw thoroughly, especially leafy greens grown near CAFOs.
Sources: EPA, USGS — 1.8M documented sites tracked nationwide across 9 federal source types.
What Else to Consider for Pear in Kansas
Zone compatibility tells you about winter cold survival — but Kansas growers also need to think about:
Low rainfall in western KS requires irrigation
Extreme wind and hail during severe storm season
Hot dry summers with 100F+ days
What to actually do about these — and the constraints that apply to every Kansas grower, not just pear — is covered on the Kansas growing guide.
Timing shifts within Kansas
Pear needs about 180 days of frost-free season to complete its cycle. 103 of Kansas’s 105 counties give it that outright. The tightest that does is Cheyenne County at 181 frost-free days — 1 to spare. Below that line you are transplanting or extending the season, not direct-sowing.
County last-freeze dates and frost-free day counts: NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS (1991-2020), county 28°F freeze (earlier than the folk 32°F "last frost"). Pear's 180-day requirement: USDA PLANTS / Growable Ground plant database (minimum frost-free days). A parcel report resolves your address's own frost dates.
Kansas Cooperative Extension
For Kansas-specific cultivar recommendations, planting calendars, and pest pressure for pear, the canonical source is K-State Research and Extension. Their fact sheets carry the local trial data we can't generalize across 50 states.
Is Pear native to Kansas?
No — the USDA PLANTS Database lists Pear as introduced rather than native in the Lower 48, so it is not part of Kansas's native flora. It grows here as a garden plant; pairing it with a few Kansas natives keeps local pollinators fed too.
Looking for plants that belong here? The Kansas growing guide lists USDA-documented natives for the state.
Native-range data: USDA PLANTS Database state-distribution records, accessed 2026-07-01.
Common Questions About Growing Pear in Kansas
When can I plant Pear in Kansas?
Kansas's last spring hard freeze (28°F) clears between Apr 1 and Apr 12, and the first fall hard freeze lands between Oct 25 and Nov 3 (NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). No sourced winter-hardiness floor is on record for Pear, so this page does not state whether it overwinters in Kansas and publishes no fall establishment date for it — check its hardiness range against your own zone before treating it as a permanent planting.
What hardiness zone is Pear grown in across Kansas?
Kansas spans USDA hardiness zones 5b-7a (USDA ARS PHZM 2023). Pear carries a range of zones 4-8, so the overlap zones are where outdoor growing is most reliable.
How many frost-free days does a typical Kansas site have?
A typical Kansas site sees ~208 frost-free days per year (derived from NOAA Regional Climate Centers ACIS, 1991-2020). Pear needs 180+ frost-free days, so check whether your local microclimate runs above or below the state average before settling on a planting date.
Is Pear native to Kansas?
No — the USDA PLANTS Database lists Pear as introduced rather than native in the Lower 48, so it is not part of Kansas's native flora. It grows here as a garden plant; pairing it with a few Kansas natives keeps local pollinators fed too.
How should I amend the soil for Pear in Kansas?
Pear tolerates pH 4.5-8.3 and well (dry spells) drainage (FAO ECOCROP). That is a 3.8-unit span, acid ground through alkaline, so pH is rarely what limits this plant on a Kansas site — amend for drainage and organic matter first.
Will Pear actually grow on my specific land in Kansas?
State-level zone + climate data is a sketch. A Growable Ground parcel report scores pear against your address's exact soil pH, drainage, sun, and frost-date data drawn from USDA SSURGO, NOAA, and PRISM — not state averages.
Check your specific parcel in Kansas
State-level data is a sketch. Your Growable Ground report scores pear against your parcel's exact soil, sun, drainage, and frost data — not zone averages.
Three things about your lot that Kansas pear averages can't show:
We read public map data around Kansas — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.
25+ data sources read at your address, not the Kansas pear average
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