Bradford Pear Trees
I believe in giving the devil his due and, in this case, the "devil" is Bradford pear trees. The experts warn that it's a mistake to plant Bradford pear trees, and rightly so: their limbs break too easily in stormy weather. I've seen the limbs of too many Bradford pear trees lying on the ground after a good wind to buy one myself.
But there's no need to restrict reports of what I've seen to the negative. So in that spirit, let me share what I'm seeing at this very moment, as I look out the window here in my New England home in early December: my neighbor's Bradford pear trees are still almost fully clothed in their orangey-bronze autumn leaves! As such, the Bradford pear trees now stand as autumn's lone torchbearers, since most of the other colorful trees have by now exchanged their autumn garb for winter nudity. I, for one, am grateful for my neighbor's "mistake" in planting Bradford pear trees.
Comments
My Bradford Pear Trees are losing their bark. What can I do?
What action you (can) take depends on what caused the bark to come off. The bark may be coming off due to any number of things, including: mechanical injury, drought, and pest damage. It would be best to have an arborist take a look at the tree to determine exactly what the problem is and what can be done to solve it.
My Bradford Pear Tree will not grow–what can I do?
If you’ve fertilized the tree, watered it and have it planted in the sun, it should grow. If all that’s true and it still doesn’t grow, maybe the soil underneath it is a problem (e.g., poor drainage), so you could eventually try transplanting.
I just planted a young Bradford about a week ago. The last two days we have had 30 MPH winds with gusts up to 40. The leaves of the tree are wilted and look dead. I tried to keep the ground damp but nothing seemed to help. Is my tree ok? What can I do to help it recover?
It’s common for newly transplanted trees to experience transplant shock. Their disturbed roots find it difficult to nourish the leaves with sufficient water, as an established tree would be able to do. High winds simply exacerbate the problem; the result is leaf-wilt.
The positive actions you can take to help the tree at this point, after the fact, are limited. But here’s what not to do: don’t fertilze. Fertilizing would foster extra leaf growth — which you do not want, since the tree’s disturbed roots are already struggling to function properly.
But do water your Bradford pear tree regularly — and play “the waiting game” to see how it pulls through.
Good luck.
I planted 5 small Bradford Pears last year and noticed that they did not flower. I looked up the receipt and they were Bradfords that I purchased. Any Ideas?
The possible reasons for Bradford pear trees not blooming are numerous. For instance, the flower buds could have been damaged by the elements; the trees may not have received sufficient water; there could be a soil deficiency. Pertaining to the latter, when, as a general rule, plants fail to flower, a commonly suggested remedy is fertilizing with phosphorus. But really, the possible causes are so numerous here that one can offer little more than guesswork.
As a follow up comment to my previous question, the tree did grow numerous leaves, but not flowers. Does your answer remain the same?
Yes. Blooming problems in some cases are quite distinct from foliage issues. That’s why plants sometimes leaf out like crazy, yet fail to bloom. This is especially true when the problem is soil-related.
I have 2 bradford pear trees that were planted 3 years ago. One died and the other lived. The soil where the one died is like digging into soft butter, the other tree is in heavy clay. The new tree which is a year younger is growing like crazy and blooming, yet the older one seems to be on life support. Without transplanting and shocking the poor tree, what would be my options to remove/loosen the clay without shocking the tree?
Well, technically, I guess it’s possible to address the problem without transplanting the tree. But let’s get “down to brass tacks,” as they say: one way or another, to address the issue, it seems inevitable that you’ll have to take a chance on shocking the roots. The roots are, after all, right there — right in the way of any work you could possibly do with the soil underneath the tree.
One way to try to elude the roots to aerate the soil underneath them is to use an auger. Says Mario Vaden:
“We prefer the third method - strategically boring small aeration holes that are about 1 to 3 inches in diameter with a small auger bit. Occasionally the bit meets the surface of a root, but it’s easy to reverse the auger and relocate it to the side a few inches.”
I just planted a Bradford Pear tree and someone told me that I will have to plant at least two in order for it to bloom. Is this true?
My understanding is that with Bradford pear trees, male and female parts occur onn the same flower — so no, you don’t need two Bradford pear trees for pollination.
I am in the process of applying a weed control to my lawn. I know my soil is low in pH — so lime is needed. Do I have to wait a certain period of time before applying the lime or can I do it at the same time?
I’m not aware of any need to separate applications of pre-emergent herbicide and lime.
I have a Bradford Pear tree in my front garden that is on the north side of the house. This spring, the tree is leafing out very late as well as very sparsely. The leaf buds that were set last fall are not opening. New shoots are appearing, but at the nodes where last year’s growth comes of the main branches. In the 6 years I’ve had the tree, I’ve never seen this before. Any ideas?
You write that “The leaf buds that were set last fall are not opening.” Just a guess, but perhaps the leaf buds of your Bradford pear tree were slightly damaged (by cold, etc.).
How lose should I palnt a Braford pera to a driveway?
My Question should read how close to the driveway should I plant a Bradford pear
While Bradford pear trees are not known for having troublesome roots, I never recommend planting trees closer to a driveway than you have to. To reduce the chances for damage, consider installing a barrier similar to the bamboo barriers people use to control bamboo. It may be unconventional to suggest such a barrier in this context, but it will put your mind at ease — not only regarding the Bradford pear trees, but anything else you might want to plant there. And even with a barrier, again, err on the side of caution and put a good distance between the driveway and the Bradford pear trees (I don’t have an exact figure).
Our builder/developer planted 16 Bradford Pear trees in lieu of the 16 hardwood shade trees specified in the Town’s regulations. After 6 years, the trees are somewhat “pathetic looking” and do not provide any shade. We do not believe that these trees should have been planted because they do not provide “shade” and I do not believe they are “hardwood” trees. Please provide us with your opinion(s). Thank you very much for your anticipated response.
Bradford pear trees are now usually considered a poor choice (and an unnecessary choice, now that the superior ‘Chanticleer’ cultivar is available as an option for flowering pear trees). To that extent, I’m “on your side.”
However, I wouldn’t push the distinction between “hardwoods” and “Bradford pear trees.” Here’s what the Iowa Dept. of Natural Resources has to say as to what constitutes “hardwood”:
“Hardwood as opposed to softwood is a relative term. Hardwoods are generally defined as the woods of deciduous trees, i.e., trees which shed their leaves in the winter. However, some hardwoods don’t. Moreover, some hardwoods are softer than some softwoods. To confound the situation, the group is divided into hard hardwoods; oak, ash, hickory are examples, and soft hardwoods such as elm, cottonwood, willow, soft maple and so forth. As long as you confine your universe to Iowa or the midwest United States, hardwoods are those species which loose their leaves on an annual basis and softwoods are evergreens.”
So technically, Bradford pear trees could be considered hardwoods, since they are deciduous.