Terry's Gardening Tips
Not as many Bradford Pears these days
In the mid to late 1970s everyone had to have a Bradford Pear tree in their yard. Unfortunately 25 to 30 years later we have found these trees have a weak branch structure. This tree seems the first to break apart in a storm, but I have witnessed the branches breaking apart on a calm summer day. This just happened recently to a resident here in Montgomery.
The problem with that particular Pear was the branch structure. The strongest branch is one that comes from the trunk of the tree at a 90 degree angle. A good example are branches of a White Oak tree. The Bradford Pear has rather tight branch structure, making it susceptible to breakage.
The nurseries stopped growing Bradford Pears years ago when they first started detecting problems or issues with the tree. The issues with the classic Bradford Pear tree led arborists to cultivate the Callery Pear as a desirable alternative. The Callery Pear has lustrous dark green leaves which turn to fall colors that range from red, scarlet, shades of purple to yellow. In the spring it has beautiful white flowers. It will get small rounded 1/2 inch fruit on the tree, but it is usually hidden by the foliage. The leaves remain on the tree late into the fall and the life expectancy is approximately 25 to 30 years. They are a fast grower, and can grow 30 to 50 feet in height with a 20 to 35 foot spread, so plant accordingly. Our Heritage District is known through-out Cincinnati for the beauty of our downtown trees which are lined with cultivars of Callery Pears.
- Scientific name: Pyrus calleryana
- Common name: Callery Pear
- Recommended cultivars: ‘Aristocrat’, ‘Capital’, ‘Cleveland Select’, ‘New Bradford’
- Introduced in 1908, the Callery Pear is native to Korea and China