Question about my 4-way Asian pear tree?

Question

We planted a 4-way Asian pear tree last year. This spring, 2 varieties of the pear flowered, and have fruit growing. The other 2 varieties did not flower.

question 1: Why did 2 varieties not flower, and should they flower in the future?

question 2: One of the variety of pear, is on a lower branch, and has gotten very heavy with new leaf growth, etc. the branch is falling over and is close to touching the ground. Should I try to lift the branch up and hold it up with string, or just let it hang?

thanks

Answer 1

All fruit varieties have different schedules for maturity. Some will produce fruit the first year, others take a year or more (obviously you will notice this more when several varieties are on the same tree!!). "Comice" for example is slow to reach bearing age. My pear tree (2 or 3 years since planting) has fruit for the first time. It is so heavy that we are staking!!

Another issue is how cold it gets in the winter in your yard. Pears need at least 600 hours of winter chill (45 degrees or colder) and most do better with 900 hours. (Ask at a REAL nursery in your area and they can tell you how much you USUALLY get. Or check with your local Agriculture Dept.) If you have some pears that need more, they may not have received enough cold hours this last winter. This may be a reason that my pears are doing so well this year as we had about 2 weeks of freezing weather in December!!!

I would prune back the "bending" branch just enough to keep it from bending. You may have to make several cuts to find the balance. The branches will get stronger each year. I would also prune back the height of the other branches to keep them at "picking" height!!!

Although I have several 4-way dwarf trees (cherry, apple, peach, apricot), I now only buy single varieties. Here is the reason: when you buy a 4-way, the top graft height is usually 3 to 4 feet off the ground. This is the STARTING point for fruiting (and it goes higher as the tree grows!!!). Even with a dwarf tree, you will need to have a ladder to pick your trees!!! It is also harder to spray, cover with netting, etc.

When I buy a single variety (we are talking bare-root in early spring -- January in California), I have the nursery staff (from a REAL nursery) cut back the bare-root to a likely branch. This oftens means cutting off perfectly good looking branches (which is why I cannot bring myself to do it!!! LOL). However, now the tree will branch out from the new height which is usually about 18 inches to 2 feet off the ground. This means that I have "shortened" the tree by a couple of feet and the fruit stays within "stand on the ground" picking height!!!

Good Luck!!!

Answer 2

Heck it relies upon on lines. I even have heard of particular pear types that are totally hardy and are offered on the buddies Plant Sale in St. Paul, Minnesota. Even permission would properly be grown theory I hadn't seen any right here around Minnesota to date. (Minnesota is zone 3 far north, zone 4 helpful/south) I additionally bear in mind the buddies plant sale actually have a million peach tree type - it shocked me as i don't assume them to advance that far north - that is everyday and continuously run out theory I hadn't have any adventure with peach timber in zone 4.

Answer 3

1 the graft did not take 2 stake and/or prune it