Pears for your heirs


What's the meaning of the phrase 'Pears for your heirs'?

An adage to encourage us to think long-term and look after future generations.

What's the origin of the phrase 'Pears for your heirs'?

Pear trees, especially the old English varieties that would have been the subject of this proverb, take many years to mature and give fruit. You don’t plant them for yourself but for your heirs.

The full version of the phrase, which is a 17th century English proverb, is:

Walnuts and pears you plant for your heirs.

The sense of the altruistic nature of tree planting was also expressed by Thomas Fuller in his work Gnomologia: A Collection of the Proverbs, Maxims and Adages That Inspired Benjamin Franklin and Poor Richard’s Almanack, 1732:

“He that plants trees loves others beside himself.”

Gary Martin is a writer and researcher on the origins of phrases and the creator of the Phrase Finder website. Over the past 26 years more than 700 million of his pages have been downloaded by readers. He is one of the most popular and trusted sources of information on phrases and idioms.

Gary Martin

Writer and researcher on the origins of phrases and the creator of the Phrase Finder website. Over the past 26 years more than 700 million of his pages have been downloaded by readers. He is one of the most popular and trusted sources of information on phrases and idioms.
Pears for your heirs

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