I have several mature wild pear.
I’ve never seen fireblight on them, so I’ve never tried to remove strikes.
I’m confident the previous owners of the property never would have removed strikes either.
So, if they’ve ever had FB, it seems the strikes were never removed.
It makes me wonder if these trees may receive strikes, but recover. Is that possible, or do I need to climb 20+ feet up the trees to remove them in an attempt to save the trees?
Thanks!
Yes it is possible. And if the trees are mature they’ll likely been recovering on their own over the years, or, remarkably, they just haven’t been exposed, and I doubt that.
I have to say that a 20+ foot tall tree is too tall anyway, and I’d be inclined to start trying to bring it down to size. I find that tending to a tree that is 12 feet tall is challenge enough, myself.
The pears haven’t done much for me, either fresh, stored, or fermented. However, they are prolific producers and bring deer “where I want them” in the fall.
I’m inclined to give these trees as little work as possible and maintain the status quo. So far, my work on them has been exclusively removing the lowest branches to keep them off the ground and improve my line of sight to my horned-rats. I did this maybe 6 years ago.
If the trees’ existence is threatened, I’d be inclined to get into them.
@clarkinks does a lot of grafting to these feral pears. Were I you I’d think about having half a dozen of those limbs grafted over to some of the really special varieties. Just which ones would depend on where you live.
Oh man… You’re gonna tempt me into even more trees…
Lots of old kieffer seedlings, callery and bet totally immune to fireblight. Wild pears ate the best pears
I wanna believe this, but all but one of mine are exceptionally dry and bitter. Wondering if I just need to sweat them longer.
When do you pick? How long do you store them before eating?