Good presentation. I hope the viewers picked up on the numerous good details you spoke of. I have been an arborist since the 1980s. I have pruned in many states, coast to coast. I hope good pruning is a blessing to you. When I travel I take a few pruning tools. Some people like to be taught good pruning. So I try to be ready to help and teach. One thing I do like to emphasize is that most of us tree men are NOT gardeners, and conversely most gardeners are not good tree pruners. So get a tree man if you want a tree worked on. If you want yard care, well California is busting at the seams with gardeners of many kinds. The thing I emphasize most is good (Shigo) cuts. Proper cuts. Then the tree can seal the wound and move on.
I am not just a gardener. My history is farming, nursery, landscape design, horticultural consulting and finally gardening in that order. Where as I am not an arborist but I have pruned thousands of trees in my life. Just finished a couple apple up in North Hawaii, that was an odd trip! I did write the pruning classes for several of the nurseries I ran in the past. I figure I know how to do it. Thanks for the feed back.
I did not call you "just a gardener." But for many (most) guys, that is exactly what I would mean. I seem to recall being supportive and appreciative of your video, and saying so. Also your resume is duly noted and appreciated. You and some of us are multiskilled. I also work in forestry, timber management. What I want from the average guy watching this is pruning as you demonstrated, with good Shigo pruning methods for each of the cuts to be made. It's for the good of the tree. Most people can do that, with some attention to detail. And the blessing will be theirs for a job well done, and a happy tree.
I didn't take offense. I am well aware of my worth and skills. From my opinion a gardener should also know tree trimming. Trees are a major part of gardening. The fact that most gardeners do not know how to work with trees just indicates they are not really gardeners, they are yard clean up people.
Thanks for sharing. I have 3 big pear trees to do today. I prune yearly but they look like the 2nd one shown. I hate being harsh on the trees I love. Yet I know the day has come for some tough love. My tools are sharp & ready to go. Thank You again, I now have accepted what must be done.
Very useful - I wasn't sure how to go about dealing with the two pear trees in my yard. They were here 4 years ago when I moved in and I could tell pruning was needed. This gave me enough insight to do it myself today. Let's see how it turns out!
Thanks Bill. I have a worst case scenario in the making, so seeing what you do helps keep me on the track to shape my three or four year-old Bartlet into a productive and easy to pick tree.
I have been watching lots of pruning videos. Thanks for your contribution. I would like to make one suggestion, which I think everyone who makes a pruning video should do: show more of the tree. Walk around the tree to see it at all angles and when someone video tapes the cut you are doing I would like to see more of the context of that cut, where it is and how it is in relation to other parts. You do a great job of explaining your cuts and that is helpful. I still want to see it though. Thanks for making videos!!
Thanks for the feed back. I'll see if it is possible to walk around the tree. It is often difficult because urban fruit trees are often crowded or up against fences and so on so approach is awkward. Once you decide if the tree is using an open center or a modified central leader one part of the tree looks a lot like another. The other thing about trees is they are organic and living so no two look the same. I attempt to impart the basic information so people understand the process. If I come across a fruit tree that has multiple possible angles for video I will use it.
We have two "worst case" trees in our front yard. Entirely our fault because we planted them 15 years ago. I wish I had watched these instructions long ago. Thanks for sharing!
I'm a newbie at pruning fruit trees, but I enjoy watching different pruning videos. I must say pears are just crazy looking and hard for me to picture because of their vertical habits. Lol. I just think they are more challenging than others to prune, but with this video I've gained some confidence with them.
Thank you ever so much, Bill. Of all the pruning videos I've seen yours are the most interesting & informative. After watching your video I had the courage to head outside & prune my pear tree which was definitely heading "outta space" :-). Looks great now. Subscribing. Cheers!
I'm pleased to hear the video helped. With near 400 videos on my channel I won't be surprised you find a few others that interest you. Most of them are more recent and with improved editing. Thanks for watching, Bill
Thank you for showing an overgrown pear tree!! That’s what I have and I have no idea what to do with it. It’s a bosque pear tree and it’s like 20 feet tall!
Vincent, the pears are worth the trouble only if you love eating the varieties you have in the orchard. You are correct in noting that they like to grow vertical. If left to their own they will produce a tight column full of wood like an Italian Poplar. Pruning is the easiest way to train the trees. Use the shear to remove vertical shoots and prune towards horizontal growth. In time as you get the trees flattened and spread the work will be easier. Good luck and enjoy the fruit.
My neighbors have two Bartlett Pair trees that are probably over 60 years old and still fruiting, I’m 61 and they were there before I was in kindergarten, I remember we could eat all of the fruit that fell on the ground, as we waited for the school bus. Delicious!
Technically a pear tree can live that long. In most of California they seldom get more than a couple decades of life because the fireblight disease infects them. It would take a very careful gardener to get one to 60 years in Fremont, CA.
For some reason your education pruning videos are some of the most relaxing to watch. Would be cool to see you prune something in Hawaii. Maybe you can show us the "pruning" that's in store for your invasive passion fruit before it kills off the orange tree haha.
Most of the tropical plants don't respond to pruning the same way temperate plants do. I often prune my current orchard with a chainsaw, cutting 30 foot trees to 4" stumps and regrowing them. I will see if I can accommodate a pruning video in the future.
Budding is done during sap run. Grafting on pears and apples is done in the dormant season. Scions that I have inserted to stock on temperate fruit late in the season seem to push away from the pressure of the sap flow rather than make a union. In Fremont the perfect time is Feb. In most of the northern USA March to very early April is good. Where ever you are finishing your work about 3 weeks before bud break is good. Subtropicals are an exception and are grafted in the spring though.
I have two pear trees, they are 6 years old, and very tall like the one you pruned, I am going to modify their central leaders as you did, thanks, you'd been so helpful.
Thank you for your video. Recently moved into a home with a apple and a pear tree. Both have grown like crazy in darn near every possible direction. Been reading and seen some illustrated pictures of how to prune. Those pictures don't help out much. See you go hands on showing what you did help me understand a whole lot better then the countless articles I've read. It is October and the pear tree is bearing tons of fruit not quite ready to harvest, I've lightened some clusters. But figure I'd wait to prune. The apple tree was bearing fruit and I was able to harvest it a few months ago. Unbelievably it's fruiting again already. Guess I'll wait to prune that tree until I've gotten the apples picked. Thanks again.
A second fruiting of an apple tree is usually due to unusual weather. I have never seen the second crop make it to harvest before the season closes. I would pay it no mind and just prune when you can. I have about 6 videos on you tube that talk about apples. type greengardenguy apples into the youtube search box and you will find some more information. Apples and pears are pruned about the same and have similar issues. The main difference is the pears tendency to grow vertical. Most apples tend to grow round. Otherwise you can treat the two the same. Try to do your fruit thinning in May and June during the June drop. Thinning this late in the season reduces the yield. Early thinning will reduce the fruit numbers too but will increase the size of the remaining fruit.
this guy is fn awsome!!!!! I love his videos. i just cut all of my trees the right way this morning after watching his videos. i was scared to do it until i watched him. it was sooo easy. thanks greengardenguy1
Thanks so much Bill. My pear tree yielded fruits in the second year and nothing after that. now there are plenty of leaves already grown. Is it safe to prune now ? Is Comfrey,worm castings and bone meal combo good enough for fertilizer?
The main reason we tend to prune fruit in the winter is the plant is dormant. In spring the tree is full of tender growth, flowers or fruit. It is easy to damage the growth at this time. It can be done but only with care. If the tree is at fruiting age I would consider summer pruning instead. June and August cut back half of the new years growth. This is above the fruit. Spend the winter thinning the tree. Your fertilizer seems like it could work. Bone meal is high in P for flowers and roots. Worm casting don't have too much nutrient but they are healthy for the soil. I have never used Comfery. The nearest i get is using alfalfa. If the break down on comfery is near that of alfalfa it should work. I can't find any actual numbers for comfery, only people claiming it is full of nutrients.
Another great video Bill. You helped me with my two apricots and purple plums over the weekend an now I can attack my pear and apple trees with confidence. I hope the bears leave some fruit for people this year. :)
Great Video.....I live in Wenatchee and 2 years ago I bought and planted a 3-in-1 pear tree ( bosc, comice and Bartlett)....My problem is that it does not go straight up each of the 3 branches come from a main stalk but they each droop and make an arch I dont know how to make them start going up and when 70 pears start to fruit on them then the weight almost make the branches tough the ground ...how do i make it start going up ....i have braced them up with poles but they grow and still want to arch down ?????
Robert, generally pears are a problem for their vertical growth not horizontal. If you had 70 pears on a 2 year old tree it sounds like over bearing on too young of a plant is the problem. Next year try thinning the clusters in May or June so the branches don't over load. Sometimes farmers will prop limbs in order to maximize profits but in the home garden I suggest thinning instead, I never prop. We usually prune to outward facing buds but in your case try pruning the branch tips to inward buds that point up instead. This will turn the growth vertical. As times goes by the problem with no vertical growth will disappear. If you can't get the branches to form properly because of fruit consider removing all fruit for one year to work on structure. Remember the horizontal and downward growing wood is slow growing and very fruitful, vertical growing wood is vigorous and produces little fruit. Bill
GreenGardenGuy1 Great info thanks ...yea I though it was odd that last year it produced 17 pears and this year it is producing about 70 ...when I first planted it it was about 4 feet tall and the branches looked like the mcdonalds arches....I braced the main stalk because we have winds sometimes...and now they are just producing so many ...I am not complaining cause I eat them all LOL but I want them to grow taller and not in the mcdonalds symbol as they are now ...Thanks so much for the advice
The pear tree that was never pruned looked exactly like mine a few months ago. Finally pruned the branches this month. I don't know anything about fruit trees and actually thought it was an apple tree(LOL). My wife planted this and a gala tree about 3 years ago but the gala tree didn't survive the Chicago winter so we had the pear tree by itself and never bothered to trim. Now would I be able to cross pollinate a 3 yr old pear tree with a new planted fruit tree and what would be the best fruit tree?
I am a bit confused at your question. It appears you are asking me what other fruit trees are inter-fertile with pears. That answer is simple, pears are inter-fertile with pears and nothing else. The most important issue here is what type of pear did you plant? Different pears may or may not be self fertile. Depending on what tree you have will depend on whether you need a second pear of a different type to get fruit. You can plant any other fruit tree you like but make sure it is a self fertile tree so you don't have to worry about pollination. My mother in Chicago had a wonderful North Star Cherry tree for many years. These are self fertile. She also grew Golden Delicious Apples for years, they are also self fertile.
Thanks for the advice and you're right based on everything I've read and learned on you tube so far. I just put these trees into the ground late last summer. One of them looks like your worst case scenario tree but shorter. I'm thinking the tallest branches must be around 7-8 feet only but very vertical. I haven't seen fire blight yet since we've been here but saw some suspicious black marks on the trunk bark on our 4 in 1 apple tree. Sure hope that's not what it is. I didn't see any fruit on the pears last year not sure how old they are, and it does look like there are a fair amount of fruiting spurs now... I should try to get a photo.
Carolyn Myre The trouble with letting the young trees fruit is warping the small branches from fruit load and spreading fire blight into the core structure of the tree. I generally remove all fruiting spurs from the main trunk and the large scaffold limbs. This way it is unlikely that you will infect the core of the tree. As long as the disease only enters on the outer wood it is easy to prune away. Pears are wonderful but you have to be vigilant about disease or face the consequences.
Thank you! I'll work on removing these spurs and encouraging outward growth! Yes I am a first time pear tree grower so trying to learn as much as possible. Will have to be pretty vigilant on all the trees, also started peach and cherries last year.
I most certainly will have a good crack at it! I'm planting 3 cultivars of the romance series sour cherries this coming weekend as well. Romeo, Juliet and Cupid. Hardy to zone 2a... we are zone 4b here in rural eastern Ontario. Garden just keeps growing and growing and it will be a busy growing season for us :-)
Carolyn Myre Here I have been trimming the same pear tree for the last 44 years. The Miss Gulf Coast here gets about 70 inches of rain per year and for 2015 it has rained already 35 inches. With my pear tree I trim to allow sunlight to get to all areas and keep the center area very very open so I can climb up into the tree too to trim higher. The tree's base is about 12 to 13 inches in diameter and the tree has always been trimmed to be short 15 to 20 feet max like a fireplug since we are in a hurricane area. The entire tree went under salt water in 2005/ Katrina and the leaves turned black, but the next Spring it budded out and shot out green leaves again. Fire Blight occurs on my tree about every 3 to say 6 years and I cut it out. The book "The Gardening Encyclopedia" that goes back to 1936 by WISE mentions cleaning ones cutting tools while cutting out Fire Blight. ie the tools actually can spread the Blight too. I think the high humidity here and rain are a factor in spreading the Blight too. My tree naturally wants to fill in its center core and often have too vertical useless sprouts thus I tend to cut out. GreenGardenGuy1's video here is very good. I learned pruning from a Farmer in 4H club many decades ago. With my Pear tree some culvert work 20 years ago ruined some branches on one side and they had to be removed. I grafted on a new branch and today it is about 3 inches in diameter. To get the graft to work I had some failed attempts before I took hold. I mention all this because one can add a lower branch on an older tree. Without pruning my tree fills in its inner area and thus direct sunlight is less and then a few years later it gets Fire Blight. I live in a very humid area.
The problem of fruit trees breaking dormancy early is difficult to solve because it is caused by weather. Precautions are the best defense. Painting the trunk white or wrapping it with a bit of burlap will stop the sap from running too early and prevent sunscald. Using a heavy mulch of wood chips will keep the ground cool and prevent early sprouting. You live in a very mild climate and I don't think you are in much danger. At the worst you may lose the leaves but they will return.
Aha! I knew you should take out the middle! I am satisfied to see that! I see me getting carried away and ending up with a stump if I'm not careful. ;) Tree trimming is fascinating. Tree-trimming videos are more interesting than anime!
Great video! We moved into our home last year, and had a tree that looked like a haunted house tree. After wanting to chop it down this year, it started to thrive and now has well over 100 pears on it! I searched and found that they are either Concorde or Conference pears. I haven't found anything about the harvest season for these, except for those in England. So, do you have any idea about when these would be ready to pick in Indiana? Thanks, and I'll be using your tips.
+mannpatrick Sorry but the client who owned that tree has sold the property and I no longer prune for them. The only reason that tree got pruned as it did is because for the first three years of it's life no one touched it. The pruning I gave it was to compensate for the sins of the past gardeners. Over the years I find a lot of under pruned fruit trees and the usual response to heavy pruning is for the trees to grow back with a vengeance. Anytime you prune a plant hard you mess up the balance of hormones and the plant will respond by growing much faster while trying to find it's apical dominance again. The point of this pruning is to create a certain shape. As that shape is achieved the next several prunings will get lighter. As the amount of wood cut down in winter reduces the amount of regrowth also reduces. After a few years you will only be pruning pencil to cigar sized wood. First a proper form has to be found though. Some fruit like citrus can be grown in the native shape but most fruit will require pruning to control size, fruit load and renewal of fruiting wood. Pears are one of the fruits that require pruning. Keeping them short enough to remove fire blight when it appears is a great idea.
Hi, thanks for the video!! I noticed you didnt use any of that black sticky spray tar stuff after slicing up that 4yr old tree. I'm going to have to do some work on a 10yr old pear tree that has never been pruned, should I seal it or just leave it to heal itself? thanks
Thanks a lot for this video! I have a 20 yr old very sweet apple pear that I've pruned on and off but really needs to be pruned on top because I can't get the fruits anyway. Now I think I can do it better with your help :)
Great how to do video. I have a pear tree like the last one you trimed growing to the sky.I see you trim alot off it,would that mean you wont get fruit until the next growing season.Also, how much is to much to trim.Best time of the year to trim .I live in Virginia. Thanks
I am in California and it is high spring here. I would have to call my brother in IL to find out what the weather is like there right now. My guess is that your trees are still dormant so it is a good time to prune. If the trees are filled with flowers, leaves and fruit you will want to wait awhile before pruning because you will damage the crop by dragging branches through the tree. In IL Feb. to March is your best pruning season but you can summer prune new growth too.
Yes, pears can be pruned during the summer if needed. What would concern me more than the need to prune is the reason that no flowers or fruit appeared. That is an unusual occurrence and must have a cause.
I trimmed a lot off because the owner of the tree had allowed it to grow too tall. The amount removed depends on your needs but I like to prune so I don't need to use ladders for picking. Prune for horizontal limbs and way from vertical shoots. The pears don't come on most of the wood I pruned off, they come on the fruiting spurs. So yes, the tree will fruit next year. It's easiest to prune in the winter like I did because you can see the wood. You can also summer prune to keep it short.
The tall pear I pruned was a young pear less than 4 years old that had never been pruned by anyone. If it had been pruned annually as recomended I would have removed less wood. Renovation is a term used for trees usually older than 20 years that have been neglected for a long time. In a case like that we don't try and correct the neglect in a single season. We usually try to work them back into shape over several years.
we bought a house 2 years ago with a load of Asian Pear trees. thank you for all the tips on how to prune them. I do believe some have a disease, is there something i can do to help them?
+Luann Harris You most likely have an infection of fire blight. All pears are susceptible to it. The best way to deal with the disease is to prune it out of the trees as soon as it shows up. The longer you wait the worse it spreads. Never let the trees flower with the disease in the tree because it will spread by pollinating insects. Always cut one foot of good healthy growth off below the last sign of the disease when pruning. Clean your tools with alcohol in between every cut made on infected surfaces because you can spread the blight too. Here is a link to UC Davis on Fire Blight. They are a good source of info. www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn7414.html
Have a lovely spring in Ottawa Antonio. Currently I'm at the house in Puna Hawaii and if it wasn't for the calendar I wouldn't have any idea what time of year it is! Happy harvests.
Bill, we chatted last year about my pear trees that headed toward Mars. I cut them back to outward facing buds and otherwise pruned them for shape. Results were good, sort of...getting fruit buds and new branches where I want them. However, all the new growth...new scaffolds and new growth at the tip of old branches are growing in a cork screw fashion - sideways, downward, upward, etc. I'd hate for them to harden off in that shape. Thoughts? Will they tend to straighten as they harden off? Thx.
Corkscrew growth isn't typical for fruiting pear varieties. The only two thoughts that come to mind is the wood deforms because of fruit load or the tree has taken on a benign virus that causes contortion. Is the twisted growth effecting the leaves too or just the wood? A benign contortion virus usually effects the leaves to as in the Harry Lauder's Walking stick Hazelnut or the Twisty Baby Locust. If it is just twisted from wind or fruit load I would get out the pruning shear to correct branches that don't behave. Pruning is always the easiest and most permanent cure for miss behaving branches.
Thanks. Leaves are great. The branches are rubbery, as new growth on pears often is. I will give them some time to straighten/stiffen, give them a trim, and leave some of the more rigid new growth. Perhaps they got too much nitrogen?
Vincent Esposito If the wood is very soft you may have applied extra nitrogen. What did you use? I generally go soft on nitrogen for my fruit trees. The main dose they receive is from the alfalfa tops I mow under the trees. This isn't enough to cause the sort of surging growth you are getting. Your fertilizer could stand to have more potassium perhaps. In any case pruning will fix strange branches but remember the whole point of the tree is to make fruit not win a beauty contest. Ugly branches usually fruit as well as pretty ones.
Good advice. I'm sure I added a balanced organic fertilizer in spring as I routinely do, and I added some soil around the tree which was laden with cow and mushroom manure. Understanding how the pear trees react, I will be more circumspect next year. I will be planting some grasses, alfalfa and clover in the rows around the trees so that should allow me to feed the trees through clippings. Thx.
Thank you ! I have a brand new 4 -5 foot pear being shipped to me tomorrow. I definitely want to keep it short . Can I just cut it at the knee when i get it like I do my mangos ?
That is called an orchard cut and yes, every commercial pear farmer in the country cuts the trees that way while planting. Leave enough trunk to pass a mower under the tree and to grow 4 scaffold limbs well spaced apart and ascending the trunk in a spiral.
Bad year for fire blight, lost two trees. How long before resistant Moonglow can be replanted in same hole old ones were in? Roots removed, no saw dust while removing..Old ones were Bosc.
Hey there Bill, Thank you for the video. I have 2 pears in my yard. One Ayers and one Keiffer, Sadly I could not find a Bartlett, so I stayed with those two. So anyway, they will be planted 2 years in May 2016 and are really tall, I pruned lightly last year and got fruit from the Ayers tree, but not the other. I don't want them to turn into your worst case tree. Should I prune them now or wait until early March when our buds will start coming out. Thanks!!!
+Daniele Summerfield When you prune a pear tree depends more on the climate than anything else. Since I don't know where you are located I will give the general concept. In mild winter climates prune pears between Oct and Feb. In cold winter climates prune at the end of winter, Feb to early March. Summer prune pears on this seasons growth anytime between June and early August. To each there own but you didn't miss out much with Bartlett. It is popular because it ships well and has good color but it doesn't even come close to Seckel for eating quality. If you add another tree try Seckel. Thanks for watching. Bill
Hello. I'm thrilled to see a great pruning video. I'm trying to learn as much as possible about pear trees, I am located north of New York near Montreal Quebec. I have a west facing front yard (measures 30 feet deep by 20 feet wide). I am wanting to buy a pear tree from our local garden center (they have grafted 4 varieties onto one tree). How many trees do you think I could have in my front yard? Would my trees have 'curb appeal'? I'm open to any tips you'd like to suggest. Thank you!
Hi I have come across some pear trees that are In the street in the uk but only one of them has fruit all over that's how I noticed them I recognised the others because they have the same bark and leafs and long shoots but the others don't fruit only one of the other trees sets fruit but they are just on the suckers that come out from the base of the tree. how can I get these trees to bloom and set fruit. I'm not sure how old they are they are quite old but very healthy they are about 15 - 20 foot tall and really bushy I will put a video on my channel soon. I have noticed some more in another street which look identical just no blooms or fruit any idea what it can be? Can I propagate the water shoots? will they bear fruit. Do the water shoots grow to have fruit suprs if you don't prune them off the tree?
ran dom First thing I would say is if you want a pear tree plant one. Your chances of getting good fruit off of a cultivated named tree is much better. I really can't tell you much about the trees you found on the street. They could have come from someone throwing away a pear seed. They could be ornamental pear trees. They could be a lot of things and since we don't know what they are I would waste time with them. If you found one large old fruiting pear it will make enough fruit to supply you. I would forget about the others that are questionable, life is short. Pears are propagated by using either a seedling pear or a quince root as the root stock and grafting a named cultivar of pear to the top.
The practice of putting asphalt sealer on tree wounds is a controversy. Some people always use it, some people never use it. My opinion is that you might use it some times with caution and follow through. Generally the tree doesn't need tar on it. If it did the tree would produce the stuff it's self. It doesn't help heal wounds. It can be used to water proof a very large cut to prevent rot before it heals. If so remove it annually and replace it. Water can get underneath and cause rot.
You can only generalize about harvest time for pears. Weather plays a key factor. The dates will move around from one year to the next. With pears I wait for color on most varieties. When the proper color is achieved then I test for sugar. If the sugar is sufficient for good eating I begin to harvest. Sugar is the key. Some pears never soften on the tree, only in storage. If they are sweet enough for you then pick them. If they are too hard, store until they soften.
I'm living in MN ( zone 4 B ). I got some Asian pear trees. I watched a lot of clips about pruning . I'm confusing about that. What's different between summer pruning and winter pruning ? which one for more fruit and which one for shape. I have some Asian pear. Central leader or vase which shape is the best for them ?
Summer pruning is done in the growing season and winter pruning is done in the dormant period. The purpose of summer pruning is to do more dwarfing of the tree. Asian pear is rated hardy in USDA zones 5 to 9. You live where the trees will periodically be effected by cold weather. I would only prune the trees after winter is near over but spring has not begun. This will eliminate winter damage. Pear are always grown to modified central leader. Vase shape is only used on stone fruit. Pip fruit are trained with a leader.
That was informative but well presented and you are a funny guy! I can see one of my pear trees planted last fall already reaching for the sky. I will see what I can do without losing too many fruiting spurs at this early stage of the game.
Carolyn Myre I wouldn't worry too much about fruit at this stage of the game. Now is the time to develop tree structure. The guys at the farmers market will have pears if you need them for a couple years. If you live in an area where fire blight disease is prevalent than I would prune away the flowers or spurs for the first few years anyway. If the disease hit the young tree it can be severely damaged. The disease enters through the flower transmitted by pollinators.
I love that I found this video. I have a bartlett pear that's probably about 8 years old and I've never done a thing with it...but now I know better. Thank you! I was at a customer's house last week, and this man has a lot of fruit trees. I asked him about a large limb growing from the base of my tree that I just noticed this month. A little different color than the rest of the tree, no fruit spurs, and very large thorns that look quite murderous. He said that was a "root stalk", and that if I didn't get rid of it the fruit would be so bitter that I couldn't eat it. I took his advice as correct, since that limb is far to big to be this year's growth, and last year my pears were very ugly, never ripened properly, were hard as bricks, and tasted like garbage. I chopped that limb off today...what's your opinion on this? Think he was correct?
+Rob Quiring What you had was a sprouted root stock. All Pear trees are grafted. the top of the tree is the variety and the bottom is one sort of plant or another depending on type of dwarfing effect that is desired. Most of the time Pears are grown on Quince root stock because it makes the trees grow slower and bear younger. Unless the orchard keeper is aware that the trees are two different pieces and controls any growth from below the graft trouble can occur. Learn to identify your graft lines and remove any growth that emerges from below. The crummy "pears" you harvested were from the root not the pear tree. If your tree is a dwarf then they were some sort of quince. If your tree is a full size standard then they were some sort of pear that was never intended for eating.
+GreenGardenGuy1 Well dang...that's a little discouraging for me. It's a full sized tree which, after watching this video, I had decided to trim it down since it's getting too tall. But the worthless fruit I got off of it were from the main part of the tree, not that thorny root stock. I know this because they came off of the outer growth on the tree and that branch was growing along the inside.. Now, when I bought the tree it was sold as a bartlett pear tree. You're telling me this might not be correct?
+Rob Quiring Bartlett pears make Bartlett pears. If your tree makes something other than Bartlett then it isn't Bartlett. You would be searching for the graft line and isolating shoots from above the line as your tree. Anything from below the line is the root stock. Perhaps you guys pruned away the tree instead of the root stock?
+GreenGardenGuy1 Well, I've never pruned anything off the tree until yesterday. Just cut off the thorny limb. I've never enjoyed a pear that I've got from this tree, though, so I'm thinking it might have been mislabeled when I bought it
+Rob Quiring If it was miss labeled it would still make decent pears. Your tree has more issues than just not being a Bartlett. I can't tell you what happened but if it fails to make Bartlett pears then it isn't a Bartlett.
When you say ''it will make more fruit pruned''. Are you referring to the season after the pruning, or two seasons, or three ? I have done topping/pruning before on extremely fast growing plants. There was some recovery time involved. Just wondering how fast a tree like this bounces back with new growth. New to trees.:)
When a proper pruning system is followed every year the structure of the tree will be trained to fruit baring wood rather than vertical growth that is fruitless. Proper pruning does not have a "recovery period". Improper pruning does have a recovery. Hacking at a tree will usually remove the fruiting wood and the tree responds by surging juvenile growth that is fruitless.
I'm glad that cutting a lot off of a pear tree does not hurt it because today I had to remove 2/3 of the branches off a large OLD pear tree to make room for an electrical cable. The bark is covered with a growth anyhow, and I'm not sure how bad that is.
+John Galt As long as the work was done with care so that all cuts drain and the trees was pruned rather than just cut back I would think it should be just fine. Chances are the fruiting will be effected for a few years after a drastic cut like that. The regrowth will be the main issue for a while. I would do some summer pruning for the next couple years to guide the tree back to a good shape. As far as the growth is concerned it really depends on a growth of what? If the growth is lichen or moss then all it reflects is the nature of your local climate. If the growth is fungus then it could spell a problem. Identify the material.
Thanks, GreenGardenGuy1! Upon removing the cut limbs, we noticed that the tree is rotting and so old it really needs to all come down probably anyway! So the outcome is good as far as reducing liability from branch break and fall. The tree was super old, however very compromised.
+John Galt Since the issue with heart rot is structural rather than productive the old tree could still be induced to fruit some as long as the pruning is intended to relieve weight on the compromised core. If the tree is a special variety worth saving then I would get some root stock going and graft the wood from healthy branches onto the new roots. Most fruit trees have short productive life spans so this type of work is typical in old orchards. The easiest way to fix the trouble is buy a new bare root pear tree this winter, plant it at a distance from the old tree, graft wood to the new tree and cut the old one down. It probably harbors every pest known to pears by now anyway. Good luck, enjoy the pears on a bit of cottage cheese next fall. Bill
+John Galt Apples followed by citrus are probably my number one and two trees but there is love for pears somewhere down the list. If you have never eaten the Seckel Pear, plant one and check it out. It is a small pear, about 1/2 size but it makes up for it by having a full size dose of sugar. My favorite pear of all. Thanks for the feed back and happy gardening.
Bill, I'm wondering if you topped off that overgrown tree, shortening the entire tree by at least 1/3. Certainly you have more experience than I, but I'm sure that's what I would have done, besides opening up for better air flow and sun, would have been right. It seemed as though you weren't quite finished pruning it when you ended the video. Thanks. Another excellent vid.
I never top off trees but I do prune them. Topping refers to the pruner drawing an artificial line through the canopy and cutting the plant to comply with the line. This is a bad pruning practice. I prune, so I did reduce the length of most of the branches in the tree. I was pretty much finished by the end of the video. The best I can say here is that a good hair cut is difficult to notice and so is a good pruning job. A bad hair cut or pruning job jumps right out at you and often takes a long time to recover. The large over grown pear was at a customers house and I would never have allowed the tree to get so out of control if it had been in my own garden. The short tree in the video was in my yard and only requires limited pruning annually because it was trained from birth rather than having to under go damage control like the overgrown one. All of the most vertical growth was removed from the over grown plant.
my 2 dwarf Cherry trees show no sign of where they were connected the two trees together, is this normal. It looks like a perfectly straight tree trunk. Is there another method in which they joined the two trees together at the nursery? Thank you
Cherry trees are also joined by budding which might not leave as much of a mark as a graft does. The other possibility is the trees were planted too deep and the graft is buried. In this case the main trunk starts to root and the tree is no longer dwarf or the main trunk begins to rot and the tree slowly dies. We will hope they are budded and the scar was small.
GreenGardenGuy1 Thank you very much for your videos, and thank you so much for answering my call for information. I had no idea building and orchard would be so difficult . Also have you ever heard of a Burbank Plum or a alderman Plumb tree being Burgundy or reddish in color that produces fruit, I think the nursery sent me the wrong trees. Or they're the right trees just Burgundy in color and will produce fruit.
Burbank Plum, Prunus salicina should produce reddish purple plums with green leaves on the tree. If you have a purple leaf tree with pink flowers and purple plums you have Thundercloud Prunus cerasifera.
Sorry, I miss understood. I thought the trees had already been producing. There are other purple leafed plums that are sterile and produce no fruit. It is really impossible to tell what it is until it does produce. You are correct the nursery gave you the wrong tree.
I will post a video of it... But a friend of mine has this giant overgrown pear tree I am going to prune this weekend. The tree is about 25 - 30 feet tall. I believe its got that disease you mentioned. How do I get rid of the disease?
Devin, Best wishes on trying to prune a 30 foot pear! It must have been a while since anyone got near that tree with a shear. The conventional means to control fire blight is to cut it from the tree. We always remove 12" of healthy growth below the last sign of infection. This is done because the disease can also be in apparently healthy wood near the wound. Clean your tools with alcohol after cutting near the blight because you can spread it all over the tree with dirty tools. Save the rum for your sore muscles after the work is done and use rubbing alcohol for cleaning. It helps if you have a partner to clean the tools and two sets of tools so you can cut while they clean. After the work is done you can consider using Agri-fos as a chemical control for this disease but I just cut it out myself. Keep an eye on the tree as it begins to grow and remove signs of the disease early before they spread. Bill
devin schmelter Devin, Proper care of fruit trees is likely to improve the fruit quality if the condition of the fruit was related to the tree's health. If the quality of the fruit is related to the trees genetics then there is really nothing you can do to improve the quality. Often times old neglected trees are no longer fruiting in the original variety. They are either the rootstock of the original or a seedling that fell from the tree and grew while the old tree died. If you know the guy who planted the tree and they know it was a cultivated pear and the rootstock hasn't over grown the top then yes, the fruit will improve. Good luck, it's good practice anyway, get some one to hold the ladder and be careful up there.
Great video! Thanks from England... I have just bought two tall, spindly 8ft potted pear trees that I hope I can persuade to grow into a useful shape. I need some new branches to appear, as it has practically none except at the top. I'm wondering if it's okay to cut the tops right off in the hope that new branches will then appear. Can anyone advise?
Yes, the best way to get lower branches is to remove the top of the tree. It is July so you still have time to do this in your climate and harden the wood before winter. I would not prune much later in the year though or the growth will be soft and tender to cold. I would decide what the ultimate elevation of the central trunk is to be and cut the tree to that point. Many of the new branches that emerge on pear will be too vertical. Some people will stake and tie them to force more horizontal growth. I seldom bother with this. I usually prune away the vertical branch and the next one to come will be more horizontal. Train for a modified central leader system with a 1 to 1.2 meter trunk and 5 to 6 scaffold branches. Bill
@demk818 I will see if I can capture the process next time I have one to prune. Pomegranate are bushes rather than trees. The major issue they have is growing too thick so we often approach the job by removing limbs at the base. If the bush is really old it may have grown tall so we do some size reduction. Too much pruning on this plant reduces the fruit yield.
The question of how many trees in a space depends on application, tree size & pruning. Most pear are sold on semi-dwarf roots, these grow to about 14' in dia. If you don't prune much or organize the branches you can fit 3 in your space. If I train the trees heavily I could fit up to 10 trees in the space. If you plant more than two trees it will look like an orchard instead of a yard. Curb appeal is a problem with fruit. People often pick your trees. Pears are otherwise attractive plants.
I’m in zone 6b/7. Today I pruned, skipping budding branches unless the grew between other branches or were dead. I think we have that fire disease. It’s had green lichen growing on the dead areas. I had to cut off the lower branches because the deer will eat every one of them. They are almost 8 feet high when they stand in their back legs. I hope this saves energy for the top pears. Deer will still get a nice snack if they walk like people.
The lichen growth has nothing to do with disease. It is a harmless growth. Pears are susceptible to fire blight but pruning them for the disease is a special project. You must remove 12"of healthy growth below the last sign of the disease or it will stay in the tree and continue to spread. I would consider a fence around the tree to exclude the deer since it is the lower branches we usually leave and the upper ones that we prune.
can you tell me anything about grafting a pear branch to an apple tree? It can be done but not much information out there. I know Paul from "back to eden" youtube video has done it. If I were to graft a pear branch to an apple tree where would I take the branch from on the pear tree. Can I take the main branch at the top of the pair tree?
Thank you, Since selling the California home and moving to Hawaii i don't get much chance to prune pears anymore but the video still survives from the days that I did. I spend more time pruning coffee over here than pears. Although I did actually prune some apples at high elevation here the other day and added the video to the list.
The approach explained in your video gives me the confidence to hard prune some long neglected Pear trees [and plum trees] in a small orchard in an old farmstead I have moved to in a cold temperate climate. The trees have not been pruned for the past 12 years to my knowledge . Good luck with your Pacific gardening.
After 12 years your trees will need some help for sure. It might take more than a single pruning season to reverse the neglect. I often work gradually towards the perfect form is it has been lost for a long time.
Thanks for the advice. These past few days I have made an initial pruning of the old neglected trees, noting that not more than about 20% total mass has now been cut off each tree; It will indeed take a few more years to tame the neglect. I have aimed at taking out the height and peripheral deadwood initially as 'this years' target. Being an optimist I have taken some of the cuttings/ suckers, using 'hormone rooting powder' to see if I can get some 'new' trees growing around the place. I should have done it in winter, rather than wait until March.........
I have a mature pear tree which I have not pruned for a year. This year I have no flowers and no fruit appearing. Can I prune correctly now or should I wait for winter? many thanks
@@GreenGardenGuy1 How many years your tree on the ground ?They talked about train young tree. How many year young trees are on the ground. ? ( i means planted )
@@DucPham-ok5ko Most tree training is done on trees 1 to 3 years old. After that the basic structure is established. After 3 years the trees are pruned rather than trained.
@@GreenGardenGuy1 I love Asian pear. I planted 1 Shinseiiki( 2019). 1 20th century (2020). Last week I planted 2 Hoisu and 1 Korean Giant. What should I do for training them.? Pleasea help me. Thanks so much
@@DucPham-ok5ko Over the next three years work to develop a modified central leader form. You need a main trunk between 4 and 6 feet tall with scafold limbs that ascend the trunk in a spiral. The limbs should be well spaced so they do not collide as the limbs grow. Four to six scafold limbs acsending the trunk is typical. It may take a few years to find the wood you need for this so just work at it. After 3 years you prune for fruit and size rather than core structure.
I have an excellent Apricot video done in 2015 back in California. Hawaii is a tropical environment. Apricots are temperate. Hawaii has no chilling until you get above 4000 feet. Almost no one lives high enough to chill the tree. Try Prunus mume aka Japanese Apricot. It is still pretty high chill but I once read an article about a lady growing them in Puna.
@@GreenGardenGuy1 you confirm my guess. I' expect this. .so, no agriculture on the highs ? Why so? No water? Too cold for humans? I've been at Big Bear, CA. 5000 - 6000' they grow some trees. It's snowing there every year.
@@antoniom1352 Most of the land above 4000 feet is public, not private. It is probably possible to buy something up that high but there are no roads. We did 4 wheel drive across a muddy cattle ranch to reach an old temperate experimental orchard at 6600 feet. So mostly nothing for sale and no way to get to it anyway. We have cool towns in Hawaii like Volcano but no cold towns. We leave the cold spots to the astronomers.
@@antoniom1352 The orchard is no gem. It was abandon by the USDA years ago. Some volunteers appear to be keeping it up but they do not know what they are doing. Most of the trees have been lost to the root stock yet they still keep pruning them. Took 6 hours on Jeep roads through 5 cattle gates.
There are alternatives to sulfur depending on what you are trying to spray for. Generally sulfur is used as a fungicide but metallic copper, ammoniac copper and Bacillus Subtilis will often work as well depending on what you are spraying for. What are you trying to control?
Mr Garden Guy, you didn't let us see the end result of the worst case scenario! Also, lets say my pear trees are exceptionally tall at this point. Is it worth trying to prune them? Like 20-30ft tall and shoot up like you saw before.
+Denebula Gaming The guy holding my camera for me messed up and missed the end of the video. The final tree should be short with only 4 to 6 main limbs coming from the trunk. A 30 foot pear tree is a problem. 15 feet between pruning is about the limit. I would be tempted to attempt to reshape the tree to something much more workable. This will call for a person who is skilled with a chain saw and pear trees. Not a job for a novice unless you are determined to learn.
lol a person who cuts the lower trees probably doesn't pick fruit! Lol Oh my... I was cutting the bottom I'm so confused about this pear tree that I didn't start growing. It was here when I moved and It has so many branches leaning and growing crazy right at the bottom it doesn't have just one straight trunk I'm not sure how to help it and I've searched many videos but apparently you have it figured out, I just want to know since I've never seen a tree trunk crazy on a pear tree like mine if it is just too far gone? It is a very old tree but only about as tall as me and some few large shoots going straight up very tall like 20 foot? I'm no betty homemaker or a botanist just figured I'd prune everything around here because it's just getting too crazy bad looking! I hope you can make sense of some of that- Thanks, Jess
Well, it's pretty hard to guide another person into pruning their tree without being there. I believe all I can add that may help you is (1) If the tree has been there for a while changing the overall shape of the plant isn't the best idea and may not be necessary. (2) Fruit trees aren't ornamentals so as long as the plant produces good pears it doesn't really matter if it has a strange shape or not. (3) Keeping it close to the ground and keeping the limbs more horizontal than vertical is a good idea so go ahead and remove those 20 foot long vertical shoots. You probably don't need them. (4) The structure of the tree for workability and strength are far more important than the aesthetic appearance. Just make sure you don't have a lot of wood with acute angles in the crotch. These tend to break. Keep the branch unions to flatter angles and don't let too many limbs come from one spot. Good luck, hope this helps. Bill
For those of us who live in fire blight infected territory every year is bad. Control your vectors. If they are in the neighbors yard ask to help prune the disease out with them. I am assuming if you lost trees then they were either very young or the disease has been lingering in the plants for a long time. Keep the flower buds pruned off the new trees for 3 years after planting. Fireblight has to spread from a living plant not from saw dust but planting in the same hole is not a good idea.
theres no way to get the original file, sent through email. I just don't have internet on the farm, and want to save the videos as a database on my laptop...Thanks Again for the Video's you are really helping us all out
Great video! Bill, I have an overbearing pear tree right now, we've had some branches break. In my ignorance, I've neglected the tree and never pruned it. When is it safe to prune? Any other tips you'd be willing to share?
Thinning the fruit is also a good idea. The tree can still be pruned if you live in a mild winter climate with a long growing season. If not then just thin the fruit to avoid limb breakage and prune during the dormant season.
GreenGardenGuy1 thankya! We've been thinning the branches we can reach. But we live in Nebraska, it gets pretty cold here in in the winter. So you'd say prune in the winter? Or would fall or spring be better?
***** In a mild winter climate like California we would just be engaging the trees with the second summer pruning of the season. If you use Dave Wilson's system. In Nebraska you could also use the summer pruning approach but you would only have time for one pruning between mid June and mid July. If you start pruning your tree now it will respond by growing back new growth that may not have the time to harden properly before winter sets in. If I was pruning pears in Nebraska I would treat them the same as most Midwest gardeners. One pruning in late winter after the worst cold is over but before the buds break for spring. If you wish you could follow this with a single mid summer pruning to keep the tree extra compact. For now I would thin the fruit from branches that look like they might break under the load and leave the tree alone until winter.
There is no harm in making the attempt, just be careful with the grafting knife, they are very sharp. I bought and sold multigrafted trees from Dave Wilson and L E Cooke for many years. These guys will mix pear varieties on Quince root stock, mixed apples on apple stock and they often mix stone fruits like plum apricot and cherry on myrobalan plum. I have never seen them combine apple and pear because there is no inter specific compatible root stock. Like I say, no harm done.
Advice for the home gardeners can be difficult to find. There are two problems with it. The geographical location that the advice comes from corresponds to the local climate. Our climates are all different and so is pruning time. The other issue is that every "expert" has a different opinion on things. Ask ten people the same question and will probably get 3 to 10 different answers. That said..... Ontario has several climate zone but if you are growing pears you probably live in southern Ontario near the lake. This gives you a fairly mild climate so pruning can take place a bit earlier than in colder regions. The best time to prune in northern climates is just before the trees begin to break dormancy. If you wait until the later dormant period you are less likely to have your trees wood frozen but sever weather after it has been pruned.
It is a common misunderstanding that proper pruning can hurt a tree. The opposite, lack of good pruning, is more likely to cause trouble. As long as we don't prune a tree so hard that we cut away all the fruiting wood then pruning is a beneficial act. Some pruning is done to help the tree but most of this activity is done to help the gardener. Without pruning the tree will usually break under fruit load, over bear and the gardener will not be able to spray, pick or prune. The short answer is no! Bill
Liz Baloutine I am not sure how these things get started. To be sure removing more than 1/3 of a tree while pruning would leave only the trunk and scaffold limbs. But....there is no rule to this unless someone decided to create one. I have a hard time imagining why some one would want to cut away that much of a tree but if you needed to you could remove that much wood and the tree would survive it. When cutting down trees they will often come back again even after 100% of the above ground portion of the tree is removed. I am not sure where the 1/3 came from here. I didn't come anywhere close to that amount of wood while pruning in this video. A few numbers I can share from my garden: It is possible to remove 100% of last years growth on Pear, Apple and Japanese Plum trees that are older than 7 years and still get a crop. When pruning Peaches and Nectarines you would remove about 60% of last years growth every winter and then cut the trees back to only the main trunk and scaffold limbs about every 7 years or so. The final rule about horticultural information is; everyone you ask will give you a different answer.
@@mystiquerose620 When you prune depends on the climate, the type of tree and the system of pruning being used. In general Spring is the worst time. The trees are tender and flowering. You can do a lot of damage. Fall is really good if you live in a mild winter climate. Very late winter is best if you live in a cold climate. I usually start in fall and finish before spring. Summer pruning is use to dwarf trees but that is a whole other story.
+Tom Braun Thank you Tom, glad to hear it helps. I didn't always talk to myself while pruning but one day while giving a class I silently cut a branch off of a tree. One of the students asked me why I cut that branch off instead of another. I told the student and said "Because the branch pissed me off!" From that point forward I realized sharing my thoughts was valuable. The student seemed to understand my methods better afterwards. Only kidding, Bill
The restructuring of a mature tree is something that is too complicated to describe here. Better left to an arborist with pruning skills. You end up having to cut down and regrow most of the tree. For most of us it is easier to plant a new tree, train it from the beginning and cut the old one down when the new one fruits.
Considering you must hand pick pears, they need dormant spraying and they get fire blight that needs to be trimmed out , 30 feet is an awfully large tree to try and maintain. Sound like it should have been pruned some every year for the last 20 years. If it was mine I would be tempted to cut the tree back and attempt to regrow the canopy much closer to the ground. This will take a while, probably about three seasons to get a decent shape and for the fruit to return. If done well it will be worth the effort in the long run though. After you finish this work I suggest a much lighter pruning every year from now on with out fail. Bill
smeyzer With out watching the video again I am not sure which one of my saws got into the camera. If it is a short handled hand saw then it is a Japanese razor saw that cuts on the push and the pull stroke unlike American or Euro saws that only cut on the push stroke. The brand is Samurai. www.amazon.com/Samurai-Ichiban-300mm-Pruning-Scabbard/dp/B004BQZLBW/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1429042985&sr=8-2&keywords=samurai+pruning+saw If you are watching the pole saw then it is also a Japanese razor saw but it is the Silky Brand with a Zubat blade. www.amazon.com/Silky-Telescoping-Landscaping-11-Feet-272-15/dp/B0014CC5C4/ref=sr_1_8?s=lawn-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1429043154&sr=1-8&keywords=silky+pole+saw
Where you take scion wood from on the mother tree doesn't matter much. The usual judgement is to find wood no thicker than a pencil. Anything larger or smaller is hard to work with. Pears and apples are in the rose family so a graft union is possible but not probable. I have found graft incompatibility between different pears let alone apples. Asian pear grafted to Comice will flower, fruit and then die the next year. Seckle fails too. I have never seen a good union on Pear and apple.
Good presentation. I hope the viewers picked up on the numerous good details you spoke of. I have been an arborist since the 1980s. I have pruned in many states, coast to coast. I hope good pruning is a blessing to you. When I travel I take a few pruning tools. Some people like to be taught good pruning. So I try to be ready to help and teach. One thing I do like to emphasize is that most of us tree men are NOT gardeners, and conversely most gardeners are not good tree pruners. So get a tree man if you want a tree worked on. If you want yard care, well California is busting at the seams with gardeners of many kinds.
The thing I emphasize most is good (Shigo) cuts. Proper cuts. Then the tree can seal the wound and move on.
I am not just a gardener. My history is farming, nursery, landscape design, horticultural consulting and finally gardening in that order. Where as I am not an arborist but I have pruned thousands of trees in my life. Just finished a couple apple up in North Hawaii, that was an odd trip! I did write the pruning classes for several of the nurseries I ran in the past. I figure I know how to do it. Thanks for the feed back.
I did not call you "just a gardener." But for many (most) guys, that is exactly what I would mean. I seem to recall being supportive and appreciative of your video, and saying so. Also your resume is duly noted and appreciated. You and some of us are multiskilled. I also work in forestry, timber management.
What I want from the average guy watching this is pruning as you demonstrated, with good Shigo pruning methods for each of the cuts to be made. It's for the good of the tree. Most people can do that, with some attention to detail. And the blessing will be theirs for a job well done, and a happy tree.
I didn't take offense. I am well aware of my worth and skills. From my opinion a gardener should also know tree trimming. Trees are a major part of gardening. The fact that most gardeners do not know how to work with trees just indicates they are not really gardeners, they are yard clean up people.
Thanks for sharing. I have 3 big pear trees to do today. I prune yearly but they look like the 2nd one shown. I hate being harsh on the trees I love. Yet I know the day has come for some tough love. My tools are sharp & ready to go. Thank You again, I now have accepted what must be done.
This is the best pruning video I have seen during the moment some of us call life - thank you!
Thank you for the comment. The moment is all we have.
Love your videos..... I wish more ppl would spend more time gardening, the world would be a happier place, I really believe that!
Well said.
I agree. Google lost this comment for 7 years.
Google lost this comment for 7 years.
Google lost this comment for 7 years.
Very useful - I wasn't sure how to go about dealing with the two pear trees in my yard. They were here 4 years ago when I moved in and I could tell pruning was needed. This gave me enough insight to do it myself today. Let's see how it turns out!
I was looking for so long a good video to learn how to prune my fruit trees. This one is the best. Thank you!
It's been around for a few years but it's still good. Thanks.
Thanks Bill. I have a worst case scenario in the making, so seeing what you do helps keep me on the track to shape my three or four year-old Bartlet into a productive and easy to pick tree.
Glad I could help. Vertical form and crowding are typical with unpruned pears. Depending on where you live watch for fire blight disease.
Thank you very much I have a pear tree that has been very neglected and needs exactly this kind of pruning
Good luck with the project. Thanks for dropping in.
I have been watching lots of pruning videos. Thanks for your contribution. I would like to make one suggestion, which I think everyone who makes a pruning video should do: show more of the tree. Walk around the tree to see it at all angles and when someone video tapes the cut you are doing I would like to see more of the context of that cut, where it is and how it is in relation to other parts. You do a great job of explaining your cuts and that is helpful. I still want to see it though. Thanks for making videos!!
Thanks for the feed back. I'll see if it is possible to walk around the tree. It is often difficult because urban fruit trees are often crowded or up against fences and so on so approach is awkward. Once you decide if the tree is using an open center or a modified central leader one part of the tree looks a lot like another. The other thing about trees is they are organic and living so no two look the same. I attempt to impart the basic information so people understand the process. If I come across a fruit tree that has multiple possible angles for video I will use it.
We have two "worst case" trees in our front yard. Entirely our fault because we planted them 15 years ago. I wish I had watched these instructions long ago. Thanks for sharing!
Glad to hear. You live in a good area if you can grow pears in the front yard. Front yard fruit trees usually invite fruit pirates. Aloha
Thanks! Just bought our first two pear trees and this was very helpful. Really enjoyed your video.
Thank you. I hope you have long enjoyment from your trees. Pears are a wonderful thing. Bill
I'm a newbie at pruning fruit trees, but I enjoy watching different pruning videos. I must say pears are just crazy looking and hard for me to picture because of their vertical habits. Lol. I just think they are more challenging than others to prune, but with this video I've gained some confidence with them.
The tree will impart a certain amount of control over the pruner but the person is the one that decides what stays and what goes. Thanks for watching.
Thank you ever so much, Bill. Of all the pruning videos I've seen yours are the most interesting & informative. After watching your video I had the courage to head outside & prune my pear tree which was definitely heading "outta space" :-). Looks great now. Subscribing. Cheers!
I'm pleased to hear the video helped. With near 400 videos on my channel I won't be surprised you find a few others that interest you. Most of them are more recent and with improved editing. Thanks for watching, Bill
Thank you for showing an overgrown pear tree!! That’s what I have and I have no idea what to do with it. It’s a bosque pear tree and it’s like 20 feet tall!
Oh boy, sounds like fun! Bill
Thanks from North Wales, UK. Lots of useful information.
Amazing how information travels around the neighborhood these days!
Vincent, the pears are worth the trouble only if you love eating the varieties you have in the orchard. You are correct in noting that they like to grow vertical. If left to their own they will produce a tight column full of wood like an Italian Poplar. Pruning is the easiest way to train the trees. Use the shear to remove vertical shoots and prune towards horizontal growth. In time as you get the trees flattened and spread the work will be easier. Good luck and enjoy the fruit.
When is it a good time to notch fruit trees ?
My neighbors have two Bartlett Pair trees that are probably over 60 years old and still fruiting, I’m 61 and they were there before I was in kindergarten, I remember we could eat all of the fruit that fell on the ground, as we waited for the school bus. Delicious!
Technically a pear tree can live that long. In most of California they seldom get more than a couple decades of life because the fireblight disease infects them. It would take a very careful gardener to get one to 60 years in Fremont, CA.
Thanks for the kind words. I'm glad the video helped out. More coming.
For some reason your education pruning videos are some of the most relaxing to watch. Would be cool to see you prune something in Hawaii. Maybe you can show us the "pruning" that's in store for your invasive passion fruit before it kills off the orange tree haha.
Most of the tropical plants don't respond to pruning the same way temperate plants do. I often prune my current orchard with a chainsaw, cutting 30 foot trees to 4" stumps and regrowing them. I will see if I can accommodate a pruning video in the future.
Budding is done during sap run. Grafting on pears and apples is done in the dormant season. Scions that I have inserted to stock on temperate fruit late in the season seem to push away from the pressure of the sap flow rather than make a union. In Fremont the perfect time is Feb. In most of the northern USA March to very early April is good. Where ever you are finishing your work about 3 weeks before bud break is good. Subtropicals are an exception and are grafted in the spring though.
I have two pear trees, they are 6 years old, and very tall like the one you pruned, I am going to modify their central leaders as you did, thanks, you'd been so helpful.
Pears tend to grow very tall. A modified central leader system will make it easier for the grower to pick fruit. Thanks for the comment.
Thank you for your video. Recently moved into a home with a apple and a pear tree. Both have grown like crazy in darn near every possible direction.
Been reading and seen some illustrated pictures of how to prune. Those pictures don't help out much. See you go hands on showing what you did help me understand a whole lot better then the countless articles I've read.
It is October and the pear tree is bearing tons of fruit not quite ready to harvest, I've lightened some clusters. But figure I'd wait to prune.
The apple tree was bearing fruit and I was able to harvest it a few months ago. Unbelievably it's fruiting again already. Guess I'll wait to prune that tree until I've gotten the apples picked.
Thanks again.
A second fruiting of an apple tree is usually due to unusual weather. I have never seen the second crop make it to harvest before the season closes. I would pay it no mind and just prune when you can. I have about 6 videos on you tube that talk about apples. type greengardenguy apples into the youtube search box and you will find some more information. Apples and pears are pruned about the same and have similar issues. The main difference is the pears tendency to grow vertical. Most apples tend to grow round. Otherwise you can treat the two the same. Try to do your fruit thinning in May and June during the June drop. Thinning this late in the season reduces the yield. Early thinning will reduce the fruit numbers too but will increase the size of the remaining fruit.
this guy is fn awsome!!!!! I love his videos. i just cut all of my trees the right way this morning after watching his videos. i was scared to do it until i watched him. it was sooo easy. thanks greengardenguy1
How are yours tree now a day ?
Thanks so much Bill. My pear tree yielded fruits in the second year and nothing after that. now there are plenty of leaves already grown. Is it safe to prune now ? Is Comfrey,worm castings and bone meal combo good enough for fertilizer?
The main reason we tend to prune fruit in the winter is the plant is dormant. In spring the tree is full of tender growth, flowers or fruit. It is easy to damage the growth at this time. It can be done but only with care. If the tree is at fruiting age I would consider summer pruning instead. June and August cut back half of the new years growth. This is above the fruit. Spend the winter thinning the tree. Your fertilizer seems like it could work. Bone meal is high in P for flowers and roots. Worm casting don't have too much nutrient but they are healthy for the soil. I have never used Comfery. The nearest i get is using alfalfa. If the break down on comfery is near that of alfalfa it should work. I can't find any actual numbers for comfery, only people claiming it is full of nutrients.
Another great video Bill. You helped me with my two apricots and purple plums over the weekend an now I can attack my pear and apple trees with confidence. I hope the bears leave some fruit for people this year. :)
Thanks for the feed back. I do not miss bears here in Hawaii. They used to tear up my bee hives in Wisconsin.
Great video. Teaching by example. It's amazing to know the potential Fremont backyards have for orchard fruit.
The Pear Dude abides. Thanks for the great video!
Glad to hear. You're welcome.
Great Video.....I live in Wenatchee and 2 years ago I bought and planted a 3-in-1 pear tree ( bosc, comice and Bartlett)....My problem is that it does not go straight up each of the 3 branches come from a main stalk but they each droop and make an arch I dont know how to make them start going up and when 70 pears start to fruit on them then the weight almost make the branches tough the ground ...how do i make it start going up ....i have braced them up with poles but they grow and still want to arch down ?????
Robert, generally pears are a problem for their vertical growth not horizontal. If you had 70 pears on a 2 year old tree it sounds like over bearing on too young of a plant is the problem. Next year try thinning the clusters in May or June so the branches don't over load. Sometimes farmers will prop limbs in order to maximize profits but in the home garden I suggest thinning instead, I never prop. We usually prune to outward facing buds but in your case try pruning the branch tips to inward buds that point up instead. This will turn the growth vertical. As times goes by the problem with no vertical growth will disappear. If you can't get the branches to form properly because of fruit consider removing all fruit for one year to work on structure. Remember the horizontal and downward growing wood is slow growing and very fruitful, vertical growing wood is vigorous and produces little fruit. Bill
GreenGardenGuy1 Great info thanks ...yea I though it was odd that last year it produced 17 pears and this year it is producing about 70 ...when I first planted it it was about 4 feet tall and the branches looked like the mcdonalds arches....I braced the main stalk because we have winds sometimes...and now they are just producing so many ...I am not complaining cause I eat them all LOL but I want them to grow taller and not in the mcdonalds symbol as they are now ...Thanks so much for the advice
Robert Engle my j n e up x8
Richard Fiser Huh?
The pear tree that was never pruned looked exactly like mine a few months ago. Finally pruned the branches this month. I don't know anything about fruit trees and actually thought it was an apple tree(LOL). My wife planted this and a gala tree about 3 years ago but the gala tree didn't survive the Chicago winter so we had the pear tree by itself and never bothered to trim. Now would I be able to cross pollinate a 3 yr old pear tree with a new planted fruit tree and what would be the best fruit tree?
I am a bit confused at your question. It appears you are asking me what other fruit trees are inter-fertile with pears. That answer is simple, pears are inter-fertile with pears and nothing else. The most important issue here is what type of pear did you plant? Different pears may or may not be self fertile. Depending on what tree you have will depend on whether you need a second pear of a different type to get fruit. You can plant any other fruit tree you like but make sure it is a self fertile tree so you don't have to worry about pollination. My mother in Chicago had a wonderful North Star Cherry tree for many years. These are self fertile. She also grew Golden Delicious Apples for years, they are also self fertile.
Love your videos. You give me courage to attack those trees/shrubs that I have no idea how to approach. Thank you!
Getting past the angst is the first step. Once you do this for a few years you will be making your own pruning videos! Thanks, Bill
Thank you for showing how to prune an overgrown tree!!!!
You're welcome. Lots of over grown trees out there.
Thanks for the advice and you're right based on everything I've read and learned on you tube so far. I just put these trees into the ground late last summer. One of them looks like your worst case scenario tree but shorter. I'm thinking the tallest branches must be around 7-8 feet only but very vertical. I haven't seen fire blight yet since we've been here but saw some suspicious black marks on the trunk bark on our 4 in 1 apple tree. Sure hope that's not what it is. I didn't see any fruit on the pears last year not sure how old they are, and it does look like there are a fair amount of fruiting spurs now... I should try to get a photo.
Carolyn Myre The trouble with letting the young trees fruit is warping the small branches from fruit load and spreading fire blight into the core structure of the tree. I generally remove all fruiting spurs from the main trunk and the large scaffold limbs. This way it is unlikely that you will infect the core of the tree. As long as the disease only enters on the outer wood it is easy to prune away. Pears are wonderful but you have to be vigilant about disease or face the consequences.
Thank you! I'll work on removing these spurs and encouraging outward growth! Yes I am a first time pear tree grower so trying to learn as much as possible. Will have to be pretty vigilant on all the trees, also started peach and cherries last year.
Carolyn Myre Learning to cultivate fruit trees is one of the finer things a person can do with their time here on Earth. Go for it! Bill
I most certainly will have a good crack at it! I'm planting 3 cultivars of the romance series sour cherries this coming weekend as well. Romeo, Juliet and Cupid. Hardy to zone 2a... we are zone 4b here in rural eastern Ontario. Garden just keeps growing and growing and it will be a busy growing season for us :-)
Carolyn Myre Here I have been trimming the same pear tree for the last 44 years. The Miss Gulf Coast here gets about 70 inches of rain per year and for 2015 it has rained already 35 inches. With my pear tree I trim to allow sunlight to get to all areas and keep the center area very very open so I can climb up into the tree too to trim higher. The tree's base is about 12 to 13 inches in diameter and the tree has always been trimmed to be short 15 to 20 feet max like a fireplug since we are in a hurricane area.
The entire tree went under salt water in 2005/ Katrina and the leaves turned black, but the next Spring it budded out and shot out green leaves again.
Fire Blight occurs on my tree about every 3 to say 6 years and I cut it out.
The book "The Gardening Encyclopedia" that goes back to 1936 by WISE mentions cleaning ones cutting tools while cutting out Fire Blight. ie the tools actually can spread the Blight too. I think the high humidity here and rain are a factor in spreading the Blight too.
My tree naturally wants to fill in its center core and often have too vertical useless sprouts thus I tend to cut out.
GreenGardenGuy1's video here is very good. I learned pruning from a Farmer in 4H club many decades ago. With my Pear tree some culvert work 20 years ago ruined some branches on one side and they had to be removed. I grafted on a new branch and today it is about 3 inches in diameter. To get the graft to work I had some failed attempts before I took hold. I mention all this because one can add a lower branch on an older tree.
Without pruning my tree fills in its inner area and thus direct sunlight is less and then a few years later it gets Fire Blight. I live in a very humid area.
New sub Thank you pruning my trees tomorrow I THINK YOU SAVED MY TREES GREAT VIDEO 👍
Nice to hear. Have a great day.
Thanks Bill! Very helpful. You would be great to have as a neighbor! I'm off to prune my 2 pear trees right now!!
Ah shucks! Glad to help. I make a better neighbor if you just want to sit on the porch drinking beer. When i did tree trimming i was pretty expensive.
The problem of fruit trees breaking dormancy early is difficult to solve because it is caused by weather. Precautions are the best defense. Painting the trunk white or wrapping it with a bit of burlap will stop the sap from running too early and prevent sunscald. Using a heavy mulch of wood chips will keep the ground cool and prevent early sprouting. You live in a very mild climate and I don't think you are in much danger. At the worst you may lose the leaves but they will return.
Aha! I knew you should take out the middle! I am satisfied to see that! I see me getting carried away and ending up with a stump if I'm not careful. ;) Tree trimming is fascinating. Tree-trimming videos are more interesting than anime!
Great video! We moved into our home last year, and had a tree that looked like a haunted house tree. After wanting to chop it down this year, it started to thrive and now has well over 100 pears on it! I searched and found that they are either Concorde or Conference pears. I haven't found anything about the harvest season for these, except for those in England. So, do you have any idea about when these would be ready to pick in Indiana? Thanks, and I'll be using your tips.
Can you go back and take another video of the unpruned tree? It would be really interesting to see how it responded to the hard pruning.
+mannpatrick Sorry but the client who owned that tree has sold the property and I no longer prune for them. The only reason that tree got pruned as it did is because for the first three years of it's life no one touched it. The pruning I gave it was to compensate for the sins of the past gardeners. Over the years I find a lot of under pruned fruit trees and the usual response to heavy pruning is for the trees to grow back with a vengeance. Anytime you prune a plant hard you mess up the balance of hormones and the plant will respond by growing much faster while trying to find it's apical dominance again. The point of this pruning is to create a certain shape. As that shape is achieved the next several prunings will get lighter. As the amount of wood cut down in winter reduces the amount of regrowth also reduces. After a few years you will only be pruning pencil to cigar sized wood. First a proper form has to be found though. Some fruit like citrus can be grown in the native shape but most fruit will require pruning to control size, fruit load and renewal of fruiting wood. Pears are one of the fruits that require pruning. Keeping them short enough to remove fire blight when it appears is a great idea.
Hi, thanks for the video!! I noticed you didnt use any of that black sticky spray tar stuff after slicing up that 4yr old tree. I'm going to have to do some work on a 10yr old pear tree that has never been pruned, should I seal it or just leave it to heal itself? thanks
Thanks a lot for this video! I have a 20 yr old very sweet apple pear that I've pruned on and off but really needs to be pruned on top because I can't get the fruits anyway. Now I think I can do it better with your help :)
Great how to do video. I have a pear tree like the last one you trimed growing to the sky.I see you trim alot off it,would that mean you wont get fruit until the next growing season.Also, how much is to much to trim.Best time of the year to trim .I live in Virginia. Thanks
I am in California and it is high spring here. I would have to call my brother in IL to find out what the weather is like there right now. My guess is that your trees are still dormant so it is a good time to prune. If the trees are filled with flowers, leaves and fruit you will want to wait awhile before pruning because you will damage the crop by dragging branches through the tree. In IL Feb. to March is your best pruning season but you can summer prune new growth too.
Yes, pears can be pruned during the summer if needed. What would concern me more than the need to prune is the reason that no flowers or fruit appeared. That is an unusual occurrence and must have a cause.
I trimmed a lot off because the owner of the tree had allowed it to grow too tall. The amount removed depends on your needs but I like to prune so I don't need to use ladders for picking. Prune for horizontal limbs and way from vertical shoots. The pears don't come on most of the wood I pruned off, they come on the fruiting spurs. So yes, the tree will fruit next year. It's easiest to prune in the winter like I did because you can see the wood. You can also summer prune to keep it short.
The tall pear I pruned was a young pear less than 4 years old that had never been pruned by anyone. If it had been pruned annually as recomended I would have removed less wood. Renovation is a term used for trees usually older than 20 years that have been neglected for a long time. In a case like that we don't try and correct the neglect in a single season. We usually try to work them back into shape over several years.
Thank you so much. I am so glad I could help out across the oceans. Pears across the ocean, Pears across the sea!
You will be a pro at this and making your own Pear videos in just a few more years.
we bought a house 2 years ago with a load of Asian Pear trees. thank you for all the tips on how to prune them.
I do believe some have a disease, is there something i can do to help them?
+Luann Harris You most likely have an infection of fire blight. All pears are susceptible to it. The best way to deal with the disease is to prune it out of the trees as soon as it shows up. The longer you wait the worse it spreads. Never let the trees flower with the disease in the tree because it will spread by pollinating insects. Always cut one foot of good healthy growth off below the last sign of the disease when pruning. Clean your tools with alcohol in between every cut made on infected surfaces because you can spread the blight too. Here is a link to UC Davis on Fire Blight. They are a good source of info. www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn7414.html
Have a lovely spring in Ottawa Antonio. Currently I'm at the house in Puna Hawaii and if it wasn't for the calendar I wouldn't have any idea what time of year it is! Happy harvests.
Bill, we chatted last year about my pear trees that headed toward Mars. I cut them back to outward facing buds and otherwise pruned them for shape. Results were good, sort of...getting fruit buds and new branches where I want them. However, all the new growth...new scaffolds and new growth at the tip of old branches are growing in a cork screw fashion - sideways, downward, upward, etc. I'd hate for them to harden off in that shape. Thoughts? Will they tend to straighten as they harden off? Thx.
Corkscrew growth isn't typical for fruiting pear varieties. The only two thoughts that come to mind is the wood deforms because of fruit load or the tree has taken on a benign virus that causes contortion. Is the twisted growth effecting the leaves too or just the wood? A benign contortion virus usually effects the leaves to as in the Harry Lauder's Walking stick Hazelnut or the Twisty Baby Locust. If it is just twisted from wind or fruit load I would get out the pruning shear to correct branches that don't behave. Pruning is always the easiest and most permanent cure for miss behaving branches.
Thanks. Leaves are great. The branches are rubbery, as new growth on pears often is. I will give them some time to straighten/stiffen, give them a trim, and leave some of the more rigid new growth. Perhaps they got too much nitrogen?
Vincent Esposito If the wood is very soft you may have applied extra nitrogen. What did you use? I generally go soft on nitrogen for my fruit trees. The main dose they receive is from the alfalfa tops I mow under the trees. This isn't enough to cause the sort of surging growth you are getting. Your fertilizer could stand to have more potassium perhaps. In any case pruning will fix strange branches but remember the whole point of the tree is to make fruit not win a beauty contest. Ugly branches usually fruit as well as pretty ones.
Good advice. I'm sure I added a balanced organic fertilizer in spring as I routinely do, and I added some soil around the tree which was laden with cow and mushroom manure. Understanding how the pear trees react, I will be more circumspect next year. I will be planting some grasses, alfalfa and clover in the rows around the trees so that should allow me to feed the trees through clippings. Thx.
Thank you ! I have a brand new 4 -5 foot pear being shipped to me tomorrow. I definitely want to keep it short . Can I just cut it at the knee when i get it like I do my mangos ?
That is called an orchard cut and yes, every commercial pear farmer in the country cuts the trees that way while planting. Leave enough trunk to pass a mower under the tree and to grow 4 scaffold limbs well spaced apart and ascending the trunk in a spiral.
Bad year for fire blight, lost two trees. How long before resistant Moonglow can be replanted in same hole old ones were in? Roots removed, no saw dust while removing..Old ones were Bosc.
Hey there Bill, Thank you for the video. I have 2 pears in my yard. One Ayers and one Keiffer, Sadly I could not find a Bartlett, so I stayed with those two. So anyway, they will be planted 2 years in May 2016 and are really tall, I pruned lightly last year and got fruit from the Ayers tree, but not the other. I don't want them to turn into your worst case tree. Should I prune them now or wait until early March when our buds will start coming out. Thanks!!!
+Daniele Summerfield When you prune a pear tree depends more on the climate than anything else. Since I don't know where you are located I will give the general concept. In mild winter climates prune pears between Oct and Feb. In cold winter climates prune at the end of winter, Feb to early March. Summer prune pears on this seasons growth anytime between June and early August. To each there own but you didn't miss out much with Bartlett. It is popular because it ships well and has good color but it doesn't even come close to Seckel for eating quality. If you add another tree try Seckel. Thanks for watching. Bill
Hello. I'm thrilled to see a great pruning video. I'm trying to learn as much as possible about pear trees, I am located north of New York near Montreal Quebec. I have a west facing front yard (measures 30 feet deep by 20 feet wide). I am wanting to buy a pear tree from our local garden center (they have grafted 4 varieties onto one tree). How many trees do you think I could have in my front yard? Would my trees have 'curb appeal'? I'm open to any tips you'd like to suggest. Thank you!
Hi I have come across some pear trees that are In the street in the uk but only one of them has fruit all over that's how I noticed them I recognised the others because they have the same bark and leafs and long shoots but the others don't fruit only one of the other trees sets fruit but they are just on the suckers that come out from the base of the tree. how can I get these trees to bloom and set fruit. I'm not sure how old they are they are quite old but very healthy they are about 15 - 20 foot tall and really bushy I will put a video on my channel soon. I have noticed some more in another street which look identical just no blooms or fruit any idea what it can be? Can I propagate the water shoots? will they bear fruit. Do the water shoots grow to have fruit suprs if you don't prune them off the tree?
ran dom First thing I would say is if you want a pear tree plant one. Your chances of getting good fruit off of a cultivated named tree is much better. I really can't tell you much about the trees you found on the street. They could have come from someone throwing away a pear seed. They could be ornamental pear trees. They could be a lot of things and since we don't know what they are I would waste time with them. If you found one large old fruiting pear it will make enough fruit to supply you. I would forget about the others that are questionable, life is short. Pears are propagated by using either a seedling pear or a quince root as the root stock and grafting a named cultivar of pear to the top.
The practice of putting asphalt sealer on tree wounds is a controversy. Some people always use it, some people never use it. My opinion is that you might use it some times with caution and follow through. Generally the tree doesn't need tar on it. If it did the tree would produce the stuff it's self. It doesn't help heal wounds. It can be used to water proof a very large cut to prevent rot before it heals. If so remove it annually and replace it. Water can get underneath and cause rot.
You can only generalize about harvest time for pears. Weather plays a key factor. The dates will move around from one year to the next. With pears I wait for color on most varieties. When the proper color is achieved then I test for sugar. If the sugar is sufficient for good eating I begin to harvest. Sugar is the key. Some pears never soften on the tree, only in storage. If they are sweet enough for you then pick them. If they are too hard, store until they soften.
I'm living in MN ( zone 4 B ). I got some Asian pear trees. I watched a lot of clips about pruning .
I'm confusing about that.
What's different between summer pruning and winter pruning ? which one for more fruit and which one for shape.
I have some Asian pear. Central leader or vase which shape is the best for them ?
Summer pruning is done in the growing season and winter pruning is done in the dormant period. The purpose of summer pruning is to do more dwarfing of the tree. Asian pear is rated hardy in USDA zones 5 to 9. You live where the trees will periodically be effected by cold weather. I would only prune the trees after winter is near over but spring has not begun. This will eliminate winter damage. Pear are always grown to modified central leader. Vase shape is only used on stone fruit. Pip fruit are trained with a leader.
That was informative but well presented and you are a funny guy! I can see one of my pear trees planted last fall already reaching for the sky. I will see what I can do without losing too many fruiting spurs at this early stage of the game.
Carolyn Myre I wouldn't worry too much about fruit at this stage of the game. Now is the time to develop tree structure. The guys at the farmers market will have pears if you need them for a couple years. If you live in an area where fire blight disease is prevalent than I would prune away the flowers or spurs for the first few years anyway. If the disease hit the young tree it can be severely damaged. The disease enters through the flower transmitted by pollinators.
I love that I found this video. I have a bartlett pear that's probably about 8 years old and I've never done a thing with it...but now I know better. Thank you!
I was at a customer's house last week, and this man has a lot of fruit trees. I asked him about a large limb growing from the base of my tree that I just noticed this month. A little different color than the rest of the tree, no fruit spurs, and very large thorns that look quite murderous. He said that was a "root stalk", and that if I didn't get rid of it the fruit would be so bitter that I couldn't eat it. I took his advice as correct, since that limb is far to big to be this year's growth, and last year my pears were very ugly, never ripened properly, were hard as bricks, and tasted like garbage. I chopped that limb off today...what's your opinion on this? Think he was correct?
+Rob Quiring What you had was a sprouted root stock. All Pear trees are grafted. the top of the tree is the variety and the bottom is one sort of plant or another depending on type of dwarfing effect that is desired. Most of the time Pears are grown on Quince root stock because it makes the trees grow slower and bear younger.
Unless the orchard keeper is aware that the trees are two different pieces and controls any growth from below the graft trouble can occur. Learn to identify your graft lines and remove any growth that emerges from below. The crummy "pears" you harvested were from the root not the pear tree. If your tree is a dwarf then they were some sort of quince. If your tree is a full size standard then they were some sort of pear that was never intended for eating.
+GreenGardenGuy1 Well dang...that's a little discouraging for me. It's a full sized tree which, after watching this video, I had decided to trim it down since it's getting too tall. But the worthless fruit I got off of it were from the main part of the tree, not that thorny root stock. I know this because they came off of the outer growth on the tree and that branch was growing along the inside..
Now, when I bought the tree it was sold as a bartlett pear tree. You're telling me this might not be correct?
+Rob Quiring Bartlett pears make Bartlett pears. If your tree makes something other than Bartlett then it isn't Bartlett. You would be searching for the graft line and isolating shoots from above the line as your tree. Anything from below the line is the root stock. Perhaps you guys pruned away the tree instead of the root stock?
+GreenGardenGuy1 Well, I've never pruned anything off the tree until yesterday. Just cut off the thorny limb. I've never enjoyed a pear that I've got from this tree, though, so I'm thinking it might have been mislabeled when I bought it
+Rob Quiring If it was miss labeled it would still make decent pears. Your tree has more issues than just not being a Bartlett. I can't tell you what happened but if it fails to make Bartlett pears then it isn't a Bartlett.
When you say ''it will make more fruit pruned''. Are you referring to the season after the pruning, or two seasons, or three ? I have done topping/pruning before on extremely fast growing plants. There was some recovery time involved. Just wondering how fast a tree like this bounces back with new growth. New to trees.:)
When a proper pruning system is followed every year the structure of the tree will be trained to fruit baring wood rather than vertical growth that is fruitless. Proper pruning does not have a "recovery period". Improper pruning does have a recovery. Hacking at a tree will usually remove the fruiting wood and the tree responds by surging juvenile growth that is fruitless.
I'm glad that cutting a lot off of a pear tree does not hurt it because today I had to remove 2/3 of the branches off a large OLD pear tree to make room for an electrical cable. The bark is covered with a growth anyhow, and I'm not sure how bad that is.
+John Galt As long as the work was done with care so that all cuts drain and the trees was pruned rather than just cut back I would think it should be just fine. Chances are the fruiting will be effected for a few years after a drastic cut like that. The regrowth will be the main issue for a while. I would do some summer pruning for the next couple years to guide the tree back to a good shape.
As far as the growth is concerned it really depends on a growth of what? If the growth is lichen or moss then all it reflects is the nature of your local climate. If the growth is fungus then it could spell a problem. Identify the material.
Thanks, GreenGardenGuy1! Upon removing the cut limbs, we noticed that the tree is rotting and so old it really needs to all come down probably anyway! So the outcome is good as far as reducing liability from branch break and fall. The tree was super old, however very compromised.
+John Galt Since the issue with heart rot is structural rather than productive the old tree could still be induced to fruit some as long as the pruning is intended to relieve weight on the compromised core. If the tree is a special variety worth saving then I would get some root stock going and graft the wood from healthy branches onto the new roots. Most fruit trees have short productive life spans so this type of work is typical in old orchards. The easiest way to fix the trouble is buy a new bare root pear tree this winter, plant it at a distance from the old tree, graft wood to the new tree and cut the old one down. It probably harbors every pest known to pears by now anyway. Good luck, enjoy the pears on a bit of cottage cheese next fall. Bill
Thanks again, GreenGardenGuy1! You really know your pear trees!
+John Galt Apples followed by citrus are probably my number one and two trees but there is love for pears somewhere down the list. If you have never eaten the Seckel Pear, plant one and check it out. It is a small pear, about 1/2 size but it makes up for it by having a full size dose of sugar. My favorite pear of all. Thanks for the feed back and happy gardening.
Bill, I'm wondering if you topped off that overgrown tree, shortening the entire tree by at least 1/3. Certainly you have more experience than I, but I'm sure that's what I would have done, besides opening up for better air flow and sun, would have been right. It seemed as though you weren't quite finished pruning it when you ended the video. Thanks. Another excellent vid.
I never top off trees but I do prune them. Topping refers to the pruner drawing an artificial line through the canopy and cutting the plant to comply with the line. This is a bad pruning practice. I prune, so I did reduce the length of most of the branches in the tree. I was pretty much finished by the end of the video. The best I can say here is that a good hair cut is difficult to notice and so is a good pruning job. A bad hair cut or pruning job jumps right out at you and often takes a long time to recover. The large over grown pear was at a customers house and I would never have allowed the tree to get so out of control if it had been in my own garden. The short tree in the video was in my yard and only requires limited pruning annually because it was trained from birth rather than having to under go damage control like the overgrown one. All of the most vertical growth was removed from the over grown plant.
my 2 dwarf Cherry trees show no sign of where they were connected the two trees together, is this normal. It looks like a perfectly straight tree trunk. Is there another method in which they joined the two trees together at the nursery?
Thank you
Cherry trees are also joined by budding which might not leave as much of a mark as a graft does. The other possibility is the trees were planted too deep and the graft is buried. In this case the main trunk starts to root and the tree is no longer dwarf or the main trunk begins to rot and the tree slowly dies. We will hope they are budded and the scar was small.
GreenGardenGuy1 Thank you very much for your videos, and thank you so much for answering my call for information. I had no idea building and orchard would be so difficult . Also have you ever heard of a Burbank Plum or a alderman Plumb tree being Burgundy or reddish in color that produces fruit, I think the nursery sent me the wrong trees. Or they're the right trees just Burgundy in color and will produce fruit.
Burbank Plum, Prunus salicina should produce reddish purple plums with green leaves on the tree. If you have a purple leaf tree with pink flowers and purple plums you have Thundercloud Prunus cerasifera.
GreenGardenGuy1 Thank you so much for Thank you very much that information so some day when it's old enough it will produce plums?
Sorry, I miss understood. I thought the trees had already been producing. There are other purple leafed plums that are sterile and produce no fruit. It is really impossible to tell what it is until it does produce. You are correct the nursery gave you the wrong tree.
I will post a video of it... But a friend of mine has this giant overgrown pear tree I am going to prune this weekend. The tree is about 25 - 30 feet tall. I believe its got that disease you mentioned. How do I get rid of the disease?
Devin, Best wishes on trying to prune a 30 foot pear! It must have been a while since anyone got near that tree with a shear. The conventional means to control fire blight is to cut it from the tree. We always remove 12" of healthy growth below the last sign of infection. This is done because the disease can also be in apparently healthy wood near the wound. Clean your tools with alcohol after cutting near the blight because you can spread it all over the tree with dirty tools. Save the rum for your sore muscles after the work is done and use rubbing alcohol for cleaning. It helps if you have a partner to clean the tools and two sets of tools so you can cut while they clean. After the work is done you can consider using Agri-fos as a chemical control for this disease but I just cut it out myself. Keep an eye on the tree as it begins to grow and remove signs of the disease early before they spread. Bill
After I work on the tree and after it has new growth will the tree have better fruit?
devin schmelter Devin, Proper care of fruit trees is likely to improve the fruit quality if the condition of the fruit was related to the tree's health. If the quality of the fruit is related to the trees genetics then there is really nothing you can do to improve the quality. Often times old neglected trees are no longer fruiting in the original variety. They are either the rootstock of the original or a seedling that fell from the tree and grew while the old tree died. If you know the guy who planted the tree and they know it was a cultivated pear and the rootstock hasn't over grown the top then yes, the fruit will improve. Good luck, it's good practice anyway, get some one to hold the ladder and be careful up there.
Great video! Thanks from England... I have just bought two tall, spindly 8ft potted pear trees that I hope I can persuade to grow into a useful shape. I need some new branches to appear, as it has practically none except at the top. I'm wondering if it's okay to cut the tops right off in the hope that new branches will then appear. Can anyone advise?
Yes, the best way to get lower branches is to remove the top of the tree. It is July so you still have time to do this in your climate and harden the wood before winter. I would not prune much later in the year though or the growth will be soft and tender to cold. I would decide what the ultimate elevation of the central trunk is to be and cut the tree to that point. Many of the new branches that emerge on pear will be too vertical. Some people will stake and tie them to force more horizontal growth. I seldom bother with this. I usually prune away the vertical branch and the next one to come will be more horizontal. Train for a modified central leader system with a 1 to 1.2 meter trunk and 5 to 6 scaffold branches. Bill
GreenGardenGuy1
Fantastic; thanks!
GreenGardenGuy1
@demk818 I will see if I can capture the process next time I have one to prune. Pomegranate are bushes rather than trees. The major issue they have is growing too thick so we often approach the job by removing limbs at the base. If the bush is really old it may have grown tall so we do some size reduction. Too much pruning on this plant reduces the fruit yield.
The question of how many trees in a space depends on application, tree size & pruning. Most pear are sold on semi-dwarf roots, these grow to about 14' in dia. If you don't prune much or organize the branches you can fit 3 in your space. If I train the trees heavily I could fit up to 10 trees in the space. If you plant more than two trees it will look like an orchard instead of a yard. Curb appeal is a problem with fruit. People often pick your trees. Pears are otherwise attractive plants.
Best pruning vid on YT.
Thanks
I’m in zone 6b/7. Today I pruned, skipping budding branches unless the grew between other branches or were dead. I think we have that fire disease. It’s had green lichen growing on the dead areas.
I had to cut off the lower branches because the deer will eat every one of them. They are almost 8 feet high when they stand in their back legs. I hope this saves energy for the top pears. Deer will still get a nice snack if they walk like people.
The lichen growth has nothing to do with disease. It is a harmless growth.
Pears are susceptible to fire blight but pruning them for the disease is a special project. You must remove 12"of healthy growth below the last sign of the disease or it will stay in the tree and continue to spread.
I would consider a fence around the tree to exclude the deer since it is the lower branches we usually leave and the upper ones that we prune.
can you tell me anything about grafting a pear branch to an apple tree? It can be done but not much information out there. I know Paul from "back to eden" youtube video has done it. If I were to graft a pear branch to an apple tree where would I take the branch from on the pear tree. Can I take the main branch at the top of the pair tree?
That was a good video. Full of learning points explained well. Thank you.
Thank you, Since selling the California home and moving to Hawaii i don't get much chance to prune pears anymore but the video still survives from the days that I did. I spend more time pruning coffee over here than pears. Although I did actually prune some apples at high elevation here the other day and added the video to the list.
The approach explained in your video gives me the confidence to hard prune some long neglected Pear trees [and plum trees] in a small orchard in an old farmstead I have moved to in a cold temperate climate. The trees have not been pruned for the past 12 years to my knowledge .
Good luck with your Pacific gardening.
After 12 years your trees will need some help for sure. It might take more than a single pruning season to reverse the neglect. I often work gradually towards the perfect form is it has been lost for a long time.
Thanks for the advice. These past few days I have made an initial pruning of the old neglected trees, noting that not more than about 20% total mass has now been cut off each tree; It will indeed take a few more years to tame the neglect. I have aimed at taking out the height and peripheral deadwood initially as 'this years' target. Being an optimist I have taken some of the cuttings/ suckers, using 'hormone rooting powder' to see if I can get some 'new' trees growing around the place. I should have done it in winter, rather than wait until March.........
I have a mature pear tree which I have not pruned for a year. This year I have no flowers and no fruit appearing. Can I prune correctly now or should I wait for winter?
many thanks
Also, I picked a few off today. They twisted off pretty easily. They have the consistency of an apple, and taste pretty yummy.
are you talking about zinc sulfate or copper sulfate mixed with sulfur?
Thanks for quick response The plan on your video is modified central leader ?.
Yes, a leader of about 4 to 5 feet with four to six scafold limbs well spaced.
@@GreenGardenGuy1 How many years your tree on the ground ?They talked about train young tree. How many year young trees are on the ground. ? ( i means planted )
@@DucPham-ok5ko Most tree training is done on trees 1 to 3 years old. After that the basic structure is established. After 3 years the trees are pruned rather than trained.
@@GreenGardenGuy1 I love Asian pear. I planted 1 Shinseiiki( 2019). 1 20th century (2020). Last week I planted 2 Hoisu and 1 Korean Giant. What should I do for training them.? Pleasea help me. Thanks so much
@@DucPham-ok5ko Over the next three years work to develop a modified central leader form. You need a main trunk between 4 and 6 feet tall with scafold limbs that ascend the trunk in a spiral. The limbs should be well spaced so they do not collide as the limbs grow. Four to six scafold limbs acsending the trunk is typical. It may take a few years to find the wood you need for this so just work at it. After 3 years you prune for fruit and size rather than core structure.
This video was really helpful. What kind of pruning shears are you using or do you have any you recommend?
I use Bahco PX-M3 medium pruner. I have used Corona and Felco in the past and found them lacking compared to Bahco.
Aloha Bill
Have a question: what about apricot tree? Any experience on it in the Hawaii?
I have an excellent Apricot video done in 2015 back in California. Hawaii is a tropical environment. Apricots are temperate. Hawaii has no chilling until you get above 4000 feet. Almost no one lives high enough to chill the tree. Try Prunus mume aka Japanese Apricot. It is still pretty high chill but I once read an article about a lady growing them in Puna.
@@GreenGardenGuy1 you confirm my guess. I' expect this.
.so, no agriculture on the highs ? Why so? No water? Too cold for humans? I've been at Big Bear, CA. 5000 - 6000' they grow some trees. It's snowing there every year.
@@antoniom1352 Most of the land above 4000 feet is public, not private. It is probably possible to buy something up that high but there are no roads. We did 4 wheel drive across a muddy cattle ranch to reach an old temperate experimental orchard at 6600 feet. So mostly nothing for sale and no way to get to it anyway. We have cool towns in Hawaii like Volcano but no cold towns. We leave the cold spots to the astronomers.
@@GreenGardenGuy1 old experimental orchard? Wow, sounds interesting.
I have heard the Big island full of unique places (gems and not-so).
@@antoniom1352 The orchard is no gem. It was abandon by the USDA years ago. Some volunteers appear to be keeping it up but they do not know what they are doing. Most of the trees have been lost to the root stock yet they still keep pruning them. Took 6 hours on Jeep roads through 5 cattle gates.
There are alternatives to sulfur depending on what you are trying to spray for. Generally sulfur is used as a fungicide but metallic copper, ammoniac copper and Bacillus Subtilis will often work as well depending on what you are spraying for. What are you trying to control?
I'm watching this in July 2024. Thanks!
No pears to prune in Hawaii these days. Not a lot has changed on the subject though.
Mr Garden Guy, you didn't let us see the end result of the worst case scenario! Also, lets say my pear trees are exceptionally tall at this point. Is it worth trying to prune them? Like 20-30ft tall and shoot up like you saw before.
+Denebula Gaming The guy holding my camera for me messed up and missed the end of the video. The final tree should be short with only 4 to 6 main limbs coming from the trunk. A 30 foot pear tree is a problem. 15 feet between pruning is about the limit. I would be tempted to attempt to reshape the tree to something much more workable. This will call for a person who is skilled with a chain saw and pear trees. Not a job for a novice unless you are determined to learn.
lol a person who cuts the lower trees probably doesn't pick fruit! Lol Oh my... I was cutting the bottom I'm so confused about this pear tree that I didn't start growing. It was here when I moved and It has so many branches leaning and growing crazy right at the bottom it doesn't have just one straight trunk I'm not sure how to help it and I've searched many videos but apparently you have it figured out, I just want to know since I've never seen a tree trunk crazy on a pear tree like mine if it is just too far gone? It is a very old tree but only about as tall as me and some few large shoots going straight up very tall like 20 foot? I'm no betty homemaker or a botanist just figured I'd prune everything around here because it's just getting too crazy bad looking!
I hope you can make sense of some of that- Thanks, Jess
Well, it's pretty hard to guide another person into pruning their tree without being there. I believe all I can add that may help you is (1) If the tree has been there for a while changing the overall shape of the plant isn't the best idea and may not be necessary. (2) Fruit trees aren't ornamentals so as long as the plant produces good pears it doesn't really matter if it has a strange shape or not. (3) Keeping it close to the ground and keeping the limbs more horizontal than vertical is a good idea so go ahead and remove those 20 foot long vertical shoots. You probably don't need them. (4) The structure of the tree for workability and strength are far more important than the aesthetic appearance. Just make sure you don't have a lot of wood with acute angles in the crotch. These tend to break. Keep the branch unions to flatter angles and don't let too many limbs come from one spot. Good luck, hope this helps. Bill
For those of us who live in fire blight infected territory every year is bad. Control your vectors. If they are in the neighbors yard ask to help prune the disease out with them. I am assuming if you lost trees then they were either very young or the disease has been lingering in the plants for a long time. Keep the flower buds pruned off the new trees for 3 years after planting. Fireblight has to spread from a living plant not from saw dust but planting in the same hole is not a good idea.
theres no way to get the original file, sent through email. I just don't have internet on the farm, and want to save the videos as a database on my laptop...Thanks Again for the Video's you are really helping us all out
Great video! Bill, I have an overbearing pear tree right now, we've had some branches break. In my ignorance, I've neglected the tree and never pruned it. When is it safe to prune? Any other tips you'd be willing to share?
Thinning the fruit is also a good idea. The tree can still be pruned if you live in a mild winter climate with a long growing season. If not then just thin the fruit to avoid limb breakage and prune during the dormant season.
GreenGardenGuy1 thankya! We've been thinning the branches we can reach. But we live in Nebraska, it gets pretty cold here in in the winter. So you'd say prune in the winter? Or would fall or spring be better?
***** In a mild winter climate like California we would just be engaging the trees with the second summer pruning of the season. If you use Dave Wilson's system. In Nebraska you could also use the summer pruning approach but you would only have time for one pruning between mid June and mid July. If you start pruning your tree now it will respond by growing back new growth that may not have the time to harden properly before winter sets in. If I was pruning pears in Nebraska I would treat them the same as most Midwest gardeners. One pruning in late winter after the worst cold is over but before the buds break for spring. If you wish you could follow this with a single mid summer pruning to keep the tree extra compact. For now I would thin the fruit from branches that look like they might break under the load and leave the tree alone until winter.
There is no harm in making the attempt, just be careful with the grafting knife, they are very sharp. I bought and sold multigrafted trees from Dave Wilson and L E Cooke for many years. These guys will mix pear varieties on Quince root stock, mixed apples on apple stock and they often mix stone fruits like plum apricot and cherry on myrobalan plum. I have never seen them combine apple and pear because there is no inter specific compatible root stock. Like I say, no harm done.
Enjoying the fruit of your labor is what makes it all worth while.
I live in Ontario, Canada. There seems to be conflicting advice on when to prune pear trees. When is the best time to prune a pear tree?
Advice for the home gardeners can be difficult to find. There are two problems with it. The geographical location that the advice comes from corresponds to the local climate. Our climates are all different and so is pruning time. The other issue is that every "expert" has a different opinion on things. Ask ten people the same question and will probably get 3 to 10 different answers. That said.....
Ontario has several climate zone but if you are growing pears you probably live in southern Ontario near the lake. This gives you a fairly mild climate so pruning can take place a bit earlier than in colder regions. The best time to prune in northern climates is just before the trees begin to break dormancy. If you wait until the later dormant period you are less likely to have your trees wood frozen but sever weather after it has been pruned.
It doesn't hurt the tree to prune so much out in a single pruning?
It is a common misunderstanding that proper pruning can hurt a tree. The opposite, lack of good pruning, is more likely to cause trouble. As long as we don't prune a tree so hard that we cut away all the fruiting wood then pruning is a beneficial act. Some pruning is done to help the tree but most of this activity is done to help the gardener. Without pruning the tree will usually break under fruit load, over bear and the gardener will not be able to spray, pick or prune.
The short answer is no! Bill
GreenGardenGuy1 Thanks. I think I was mostly asking because I thought you weren't supposed to take more than 1/3 of the tree when you prune.
Liz Baloutine I am not sure how these things get started. To be sure removing more than 1/3 of a tree while pruning would leave only the trunk and scaffold limbs. But....there is no rule to this unless someone decided to create one. I have a hard time imagining why some one would want to cut away that much of a tree but if you needed to you could remove that much wood and the tree would survive it. When cutting down trees they will often come back again even after 100% of the above ground portion of the tree is removed. I am not sure where the 1/3 came from here. I didn't come anywhere close to that amount of wood while pruning in this video. A few numbers I can share from my garden: It is possible to remove 100% of last years growth on Pear, Apple and Japanese Plum trees that are older than 7 years and still get a crop. When pruning Peaches and Nectarines you would remove about 60% of last years growth every winter and then cut the trees back to only the main trunk and scaffold limbs about every 7 years or so. The final rule about horticultural information is; everyone you ask will give you a different answer.
Hi...how often should a pear or apple trees be pruned?thank you
Every year.
@@GreenGardenGuy1 thank you..so I guess the best time to prune trees would be in spring..instead of fall?
@@mystiquerose620 When you prune depends on the climate, the type of tree and the system of pruning being used. In general Spring is the worst time. The trees are tender and flowering. You can do a lot of damage. Fall is really good if you live in a mild winter climate. Very late winter is best if you live in a cold climate. I usually start in fall and finish before spring. Summer pruning is use to dwarf trees but that is a whole other story.
@@GreenGardenGuy1 thank you so much for explaining..have a great day😊
@@mystiquerose620 You're welcome
I have never tried to download a video from you tube so I am not sure about that. I just copy the URL from youtube videos and play them from the web.
Very helpful to hear you think through the process while doing it. Thank you!
+Tom Braun Thank you Tom, glad to hear it helps. I didn't always talk to myself while pruning but one day while giving a class I silently cut a branch off of a tree. One of the students asked me why I cut that branch off instead of another. I told the student and said "Because the branch pissed me off!" From that point forward I realized sharing my thoughts was valuable. The student seemed to understand my methods better afterwards. Only kidding, Bill
i have a tree that has already made it to outer space. I dont know what to do with it. huge trunk goes way up.
The restructuring of a mature tree is something that is too complicated to describe here. Better left to an arborist with pruning skills. You end up having to cut down and regrow most of the tree. For most of us it is easier to plant a new tree, train it from the beginning and cut the old one down when the new one fruits.
@@GreenGardenGuy1 well THATS a good idea. Thanks!!!
@@robinchopra139 You're welcome.
I have a 30 foot moonglow pear tree. I should cut it down to ten feet high?
Considering you must hand pick pears, they need dormant spraying and they get fire blight that needs to be trimmed out , 30 feet is an awfully large tree to try and maintain. Sound like it should have been pruned some every year for the last 20 years. If it was mine I would be tempted to cut the tree back and attempt to regrow the canopy much closer to the ground. This will take a while, probably about three seasons to get a decent shape and for the fruit to return. If done well it will be worth the effort in the long run though. After you finish this work I suggest a much lighter pruning every year from now on with out fail. Bill
What kind of saw are you using?
smeyzer With out watching the video again I am not sure which one of my saws got into the camera. If it is a short handled hand saw then it is a Japanese razor saw that cuts on the push and the pull stroke unlike American or Euro saws that only cut on the push stroke. The brand is Samurai. www.amazon.com/Samurai-Ichiban-300mm-Pruning-Scabbard/dp/B004BQZLBW/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1429042985&sr=8-2&keywords=samurai+pruning+saw
If you are watching the pole saw then it is also a Japanese razor saw but it is the Silky Brand with a Zubat blade.
www.amazon.com/Silky-Telescoping-Landscaping-11-Feet-272-15/dp/B0014CC5C4/ref=sr_1_8?s=lawn-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1429043154&sr=1-8&keywords=silky+pole+saw
also...grafting should be done when the sap is running in april...would you agree?
Thank you for the nice comment. Feel free to use these for your customers benefit.
Where you take scion wood from on the mother tree doesn't matter much. The usual judgement is to find wood no thicker than a pencil. Anything larger or smaller is hard to work with. Pears and apples are in the rose family so a graft union is possible but not probable. I have found graft incompatibility between different pears let alone apples. Asian pear grafted to Comice will flower, fruit and then die the next year. Seckle fails too. I have never seen a good union on Pear and apple.
Once you accept your mission you are half way there. Good luck and thank you. Bill