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btd64 wrote: Tue Apr 26, 2022 12:52 pm

USSAmerica wrote: Tue Apr 26, 2022 12:17 pm

Apollo11 wrote: Tue Apr 26, 2022 6:26 am Hi all,

Nice Mike!

BTW, how invasive are those species? You mandatory have to remove them?


Leo "Apollo11"

Hi Leo,

The Callery Pear trees are very invasive. They are very disease and insect resistant and they grow like weeds. In my before picture the front section of trees are around 12 feet tall. They were not there at all a year ago. The larger area that we had cleared were around 30 feet tall. They were 2 years old. The other big issue with them is that they grow 4 inch long spikes that can penetrate heavy tractor tires. You couldn't even slip between them because of how closely they grow together and because of the spikes.

It isn't mandatory to remove them, but awareness of the problem is growing and there are now even "bounty" programs where you bring evidence of removing up to 5 of the trees and they will give you free native replacement trees to plant. The program this spring had to be suspended after being open for just a day as the demand was overwhelming. We have plans to plant 5 or 6 tiered rows of trees after the pool and backyard fence are completed. Shorter cherry trees closest to the house, then taller red and gold maples, and the tallest red oaks in the back.

Do you know the origin of this pear tree?....GP

USSAmerica wrote: Tue Apr 26, 2022 4:56 pm

btd64 wrote: Tue Apr 26, 2022 12:52 pm

USSAmerica wrote: Tue Apr 26, 2022 12:17 pm

Hi Leo,

The Callery Pear trees are very invasive. They are very disease and insect resistant and they grow like weeds. In my before picture the front section of trees are around 12 feet tall. They were not there at all a year ago. The larger area that we had cleared were around 30 feet tall. They were 2 years old. The other big issue with them is that they grow 4 inch long spikes that can penetrate heavy tractor tires. You couldn't even slip between them because of how closely they grow together and because of the spikes.

It isn't mandatory to remove them, but awareness of the problem is growing and there are now even "bounty" programs where you bring evidence of removing up to 5 of the trees and they will give you free native replacement trees to plant. The program this spring had to be suspended after being open for just a day as the demand was overwhelming. We have plans to plant 5 or 6 tiered rows of trees after the pool and backyard fence are completed. Shorter cherry trees closest to the house, then taller red and gold maples, and the tallest red oaks in the back.

Do you know the origin of this pear tree?....GP

Hey GP!

As a matter of fact, I've done a lot of reading about Callery Pears since I identified what they were last Summer while the house was still under construction. The history starts with arborists creating a new variety of popular, ornamental tree from the root stock of the disease resistant Callery Pear tree. The Callery Pear root stock was imported from China around 80 - 100 years ago and the new variety developed around 60 years ago was called the Bradford Pear. They have been very popular and commonly planted throughout new subdivisions, in front yards, and along roads. Because they grow fairly quickly and are resistant to diseases, drought, and pollution, they started showing up almost everywhere. They were also sterile and couldn't produce fruit by pollinating with each other. Every Bradford Pear tree that you saw was grown in a nursery, grafted onto Callery Pear root stock. The big problem with them that started showing up 10-20 years later, is that they are not very sturdy and have a weak branch structure. They broke and fell very frequently in storms or with snow and ice buildup.

So, the arborists went back to work and developed a new variety based off the root stock of the Callery Pear, I believe they were called Cleveland Pears, but I may not remember that properly. They were also nicely disease resistant and had a stronger branch structure, so they didn't tend to fall apart after 20 years or so. They were also sterile and couldn't produce fruit or seeds by pollinating with other Cleveland Pears. They were developed around 30 years ago.

Enter the law of unintended consequences. Both varieties were sterile when pollinating with their own variety, but if they cross pollinated with each other they produced fruit and seeds. Those seeds didn't grow Bradford or Cleveland Pears, they grew trees of the original root stock that those others were grown from, the Callery Pear. Birds eat the fruit and spread the seeds and the Callery Pear trees are VERY fertile. By the time anyone started to pay attention, they were growing along fence lines, along roads, spreading into open fields and along creeks. They grow very densely together and in addition to the 4 inch long spikes that they grow, very few insects will eat their leaves so large patches become a "food desert" for birds for most of the year.

Our development is built on old farmland that sat vacant for several years, so the Callery Pears had spread across much of it. As much as I love having a lot of trees on the properly, they had to go! We are planning to plant several new trees that are desirable in the cleared area after the pool and fence are completed. The last thing we want to do is plant new trees that have to be moved for the pool or fence. The Callery Pear trees that are remaining on the very back 1/4 acre or so will go eventually. For now, they are "standing firewood" for my chainsaw and fire pit. They will provide nice atmosphere as they burn on warm summer nights or cool fall afternoons.

Sorry for the wall of text, but you asked....

USSAmerica wrote: Tue Apr 26, 2022 12:17 pm

Apollo11 wrote: Tue Apr 26, 2022 6:26 am Hi all,

Nice Mike!

BTW, how invasive are those species? You mandatory have to remove them?

Hi Leo,

The Callery Pear trees are very invasive. They are very disease and insect resistant and they grow like weeds. In my before picture the front section of trees are around 12 feet tall. They were not there at all a year ago. The larger area that we had cleared were around 30 feet tall. They were 2 years old. The other big issue with them is that they grow 4 inch long spikes that can penetrate heavy tractor tires. You couldn't even slip between them because of how closely they grow together and because of the spikes.

It isn't mandatory to remove them, but awareness of the problem is growing and there are now even "bounty" programs where you bring evidence of removing up to 5 of the trees and they will give you free native replacement trees to plant. The program this spring had to be suspended after being open for just a day as the demand was overwhelming. We have plans to plant 5 or 6 tiered rows of trees after the pool and backyard fence are completed. Shorter cherry trees closest to the house, then taller red and gold maples, and the tallest red oaks in the back.