A rare pear tree has been donated to a local cider company to safeguard the varieties' future.

Mayor of Hereford Coun Paul Stevens presented a new Holmer Perry Pear tree to Artistraw Cidery and Orchard in Clifford, near Hay-on-Wye on Monday.

The mayor first learned that the Holmer Perry Pear was at risk of extinction when he accompanied the then Mayor of Hereford Kath Hey to the Museum of Cider in 2019.

A two-year process followed of sourcing scion wood from the National Perry Pear collection in Hartpury, near Gloucester, then turning to Nick Dunn of Frank P Matthews Ltd, near Tenbury Wells, to make 14 new Holmer perry pear trees.

October 2021 marked the first of many plantings across Herefordshire. There is even one being planted in Holmer, near where the mother tree has recently been rediscovered.

Cidermakers since 2003, Tom Tibbits and Lydia Crimp started Artistraw Cidery and Orchard in 2017 to share a few of their creations with a wider audience. The couple have planted 85 of their own apple and pear trees in their small orchard in west Herefordshire.

Mr Tibbits said: “It’s an honour to have our little orchard recognized for its attempt to preserve rarer varieties of fruit for that noble art of cider and perry making."

"We look forward to welcoming visitors to the cidery where they can enjoy tours and tastings, and of course visit the Holmer perry pear tree and see it with their own eyes.”