Bradford Pear or Callery Pear - Pyrus calleryana
Bradford Pear or Callery Pear - Pyrus calleryana - is a once beloved and now much hated non-native tree.
The Bradford pear is technically a specific cultivar of the ornamental Callery pear. It usually grows 25-30 feet tall, with a canopy perhaps 20-25 feet wide, noted for its lovely, uniformly rounded form. That consistently rounded shape lends itself to symmetrical landscape plantings, and many homeowners will plant Bradfords to line their driveways. The tree blooms dependably, displays wonderful fall color, and, best of all, has virtually no insect or disease problems. Unfortunately, that’s where the good news about Bradford pears comes to an end.
The same branch structure that makes that rounded canopy shape so pleasing, with branches angled sharply upward from the trunk (called a narrow or tight crotch angle), is simply not as strong as it would be if those branches were closer to horizontal. Further, all of its major limbs diverge from a single point on the trunk. This structural weakness makes the trees very susceptible to storm damage, whether from wind or from ice, and the damage often causes large limbs to rip down one side of the trunk, leaving the homeowner with a lopsided tree that destroys their carefully cultivated symmetry.
Structural weakness is not the only drawback associated with Bradford pears, though. Originally bred to be sterile, this ornamental pear tree was never intended to produce fruit. In reality, though, it is often pollinated by newer Callery pear cultivars (“Aristocrat,” ‘Chanticleer,” “Cleveland Select,” and “Redspire”) that were developed to overcome some of the Bradford’s structural issues. This cross-pollination can lead to viable seeds, and that’s where the real trouble starts. The offspring of those well-mannered ornamental pears are, to put it nicely, aggressive thugs. They spread rapidly with the help of birds dropping their seeds, and the resulting plants are thorny invaders, choking out native wildlife habitat wherever the seedlings take hold. The problem is severe enough that many localities have banned the Bradford pear altogether in certain settings.
The Callery pear is an invasive species in many areas of eastern North America, outcompeting many native plants and trees. In the northeastern United States (and increasingly the South), wild Callery pears sometimes form extensive, nearly pure stands in old fields, along roadsides, and in similar disturbed areas.
While these wild plants are sometimes called "Bradford pear" (for the 'Bradford' cultivar), they are actually wild-growing descendants of multiple genotypes of Pyrus calleryana, and hence more correctly referred to by the common (or scientific) name of the species itself.
The tree is known for its pungent, often unpleasant smell during its flowering stage, which has been described as reminiscent of rotting fish, chlorine, or other things.
If all this weren’t discouraging enough, Bradford pears just don’t live a long time, as trees go. Starting around the age of 20, the trees simply begin to decline, with few of them living past the age of 30.
The species is named after the Italian-French sinologue Joseph-Marie Callery (1810–1862) who sent specimens of the tree to Europe from China.
thedailysouth.southernliving.com/2011/02/28/i-just-hate-b...
guilford.ces.ncsu.edu/2013/10/bradford-pear-a-mixed-bless...
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyrus_calleryana
Bradford Pear or Callery Pear - Pyrus calleryana
Bradford Pear or Callery Pear - Pyrus calleryana
Bradford Pear or Callery Pear - Pyrus calleryana - is a once beloved and now much hated non-native tree.
The Bradford pear is technically a specific cultivar of the ornamental Callery pear. It usually grows 25-30 feet tall, with a canopy perhaps 20-25 feet wide, noted for its lovely, uniformly rounded form. That consistently rounded shape lends itself to symmetrical landscape plantings, and many homeowners will plant Bradfords to line their driveways. The tree blooms dependably, displays wonderful fall color, and, best of all, has virtually no insect or disease problems. Unfortunately, that’s where the good news about Bradford pears comes to an end.
The same branch structure that makes that rounded canopy shape so pleasing, with branches angled sharply upward from the trunk (called a narrow or tight crotch angle), is simply not as strong as it would be if those branches were closer to horizontal. Further, all of its major limbs diverge from a single point on the trunk. This structural weakness makes the trees very susceptible to storm damage, whether from wind or from ice, and the damage often causes large limbs to rip down one side of the trunk, leaving the homeowner with a lopsided tree that destroys their carefully cultivated symmetry.
Structural weakness is not the only drawback associated with Bradford pears, though. Originally bred to be sterile, this ornamental pear tree was never intended to produce fruit. In reality, though, it is often pollinated by newer Callery pear cultivars (“Aristocrat,” ‘Chanticleer,” “Cleveland Select,” and “Redspire”) that were developed to overcome some of the Bradford’s structural issues. This cross-pollination can lead to viable seeds, and that’s where the real trouble starts. The offspring of those well-mannered ornamental pears are, to put it nicely, aggressive thugs. They spread rapidly with the help of birds dropping their seeds, and the resulting plants are thorny invaders, choking out native wildlife habitat wherever the seedlings take hold. The problem is severe enough that many localities have banned the Bradford pear altogether in certain settings.
The Callery pear is an invasive species in many areas of eastern North America, outcompeting many native plants and trees. In the northeastern United States (and increasingly the South), wild Callery pears sometimes form extensive, nearly pure stands in old fields, along roadsides, and in similar disturbed areas.
While these wild plants are sometimes called "Bradford pear" (for the 'Bradford' cultivar), they are actually wild-growing descendants of multiple genotypes of Pyrus calleryana, and hence more correctly referred to by the common (or scientific) name of the species itself.
The tree is known for its pungent, often unpleasant smell during its flowering stage, which has been described as reminiscent of rotting fish, chlorine, or other things.
If all this weren’t discouraging enough, Bradford pears just don’t live a long time, as trees go. Starting around the age of 20, the trees simply begin to decline, with few of them living past the age of 30.
The species is named after the Italian-French sinologue Joseph-Marie Callery (1810–1862) who sent specimens of the tree to Europe from China.
thedailysouth.southernliving.com/2011/02/28/i-just-hate-b...
guilford.ces.ncsu.edu/2013/10/bradford-pear-a-mixed-bless...
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyrus_calleryana
Bradford Pear or Callery Pear - Pyrus calleryana