Pruning Pears

[KylePa]

Guys just curious what you do with your pear Trees. All of mine want to grow straight up, not matter what I do with them. Seckle, Keiffer, Sunrise, Gourmet. Do you prune a pear tree the exact same way you prune an apple tree with a single leader and then to establish scaffolds. These are 2/3 year trees and they just want to go skyward with multiple leaders.

 

[ToddG]

I quit trying. I just prune dead and crossing limbs mostly.

 

[Charles Clear]

ditto.....like todd said, I remove crossing branches and dead ones.

 

[Prof.Kent]

I quit trying. I just prune dead and crossing limbs mostly.

I quit trying too. Pears, and some apple trees (like Macoun), are just stubborn and like to grow straight up. And straight up FAST. Cut their tops off and it just encourages them to vegetative growth again, instead of fruiting. I like a good pear, but I find it a lot easier to raise a good apple.

 

[Prof.Kent]

Guys just curious what you do with your pear Trees. All of mine want to grow straight up, not matter what I do with them. Seckle, Keiffer, Sunrise, Gourmet. Do you prune a pear tree the exact same way you prune an apple tree with a single leader and then to establish scaffolds. These are 2/3 year trees and they just want to go skyward with multiple leaders.

I let them grow until they start producting fruit spurs all the way to their tops, with minimal pruning. Any pruning to make them more apple-tree-shaped just seems to increase the years to fruiting. I would like to grow a few dwarfing pears on a trellis so they can be picked from the ground.

 

[NE PA QDM]

Agree w the above
It still try to train some of my pear trees although some of them are a lost cause. Same thing w my Kingston black apple trees; their tendency to grow upright exceeds my abilities to keep them from doing so. Most of my apples are meticulously trained with wide crotch angles but the pears seem to be too much work to train.

 

[H20fwler]

Pears have a mind of their own, like everyone else has said try and cut anything growing in, crossing and dead and then just let them do their thing.

 

[DLH]

I’ve been attempting to train an Ayers pear and it grows straight up too. I’ve been hanging bottles with water in them from the tips of the limbs. I was hoping to induce earlier fruiting and remove them once it starts to bear fruit. The first year looked good but now the tied down limbs are going straight up and it looks like a giant menorah.

 

[Native Hunter]

Don't worry about it. It won't be that straight up if you plant the right pears and they get loaded with fruit.

 

[WTNUT]

Guys just curious what you do with your pear Trees. All of mine want to grow straight up, not matter what I do with them. Seckle, Keiffer, Sunrise, Gourmet. Do you prune a pear tree the exact same way you prune an apple tree with a single leader and then to establish scaffolds. These are 2/3 year trees and they just want to go skyward with multiple leaders.

I use to give up on them, but have not for many years. The first trees I planted were pears and there are days I wish I had stayed with only pears. For me, I have just about every type of European and Asian variety there is. I take a very aggressive approach to training the trees. I pick were I want a branch and train it to about 60 to 80 degrees with wire. Then once they get big enough to set fruit you are good to go, just trim off the new laterals you don’t want as you go and after you stop training. One of by best looking trees of all time is a well trained pear. If I think of it, I will get a pic next time.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[DLH]

Now that’s loaded remind me why we fool with apples again?

 

[Prof.Kent]

It should be said also that from what I've read (and since experienced on a a few pear trees the past 20 years), pear trees do not require the amount of pruning that apple trees do to form a good structure. They are pruning-friendly trees.

 

[H20fwler]

Now that’s loaded remind me why we fool with apples again?

A lot to be said for that!

I've gone about 50/50 apple and pears now...got a wild hair last year and added fifteen more pear trees last fall.

 

[Prof.Kent]

Now that’s loaded remind me why we fool with apples again?

They taste better and more varieties!

 

[ToddG]

I love the pear trees but mine bloom early and get wiped out by frost every spring. This hasn't been a problem with my apple trees.

 

[meyerske]

My Kiefer pears grow straight up also. I've tried pruning to outward buds, but it doesn't seem to do much good. They are growing great, so I'm just going to let them go.

 

[huntall]

I love pear trees. I try to prune tops enough to make sure the trees are strong enough to handle a load of fruit. Other than that, I pretty much don't prune anymore.

 

[huntall]

By pruning tops, I mean before they get too bad out of reach I'll try prune the tree a couple years then leave them alone after that

 

[DLH]

This is a picture of my pear I’ve been trying to train with bottles. I was hoping it would cause it to fruit earlier if it was for deer I would just let it go.