I really like callery pear as a rootstock for my region, and I know some places you can just find some and dig them up, but does anyone have a source to buy them? A quick Google search doesn’t come up with anything besides people selling one-offs for $5-20. I thought I remembered one of the big nurseries carrying callery seedlings, but it seems that they stopped. I’m sure there’s pressure not to sell them with people being so against them because of their invasiveness, but if you know what you’re doing and prune back suckers, a callery rootstock is never going to spread seed.
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That sounds great, but the minimum order of $1k is definitely too much for me.
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Come to Ohio and get all the callery trees you want for free. They are ruining our state’s fields and open areas. Dig them all up and take them back with you. The state has outlawed any nursery to sell the Bradford pears and any of their relatives.
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I was gonna say, why buy when you can do everyone a favor and dig up a few (hundred) for free?
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I guess it’s a matter of finding a field of them and getting permission to dig on someone else’s property. And in my fairly urban location, the ones I’ve tried to dig have all been mowed repeatedly, so though they look like 1/4" seedlings, they’re 3-4" in diameter at ground level and nearly impossible to move without killing.
Same here in West side of Michigan, most of the highway and powerline right-a-ways are choked full of them.
All of the storm water run off places that are dry fields/pools until it rains have tons of the seedlings around it. I think my state is moving to adding them to a banned invasive list.
Maybe think about Betulifolia rootstock instead?
Burnt Ridge- 10 for $40
A good description of various pear rootstocks-
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