@clarkinks I agree. I’m just pointing out “beautifolia” has coincindentally a nice meaning.
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I don’t think Clark ever met a pear tree that was not “beautiful”. 
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Some of these rootstocks push growth to fast and require pruning or staking! This one is ok for now. Today is May 24th 2023.
This photo below is 19 days ago as it first leafed out. Notice the steel post beside it.
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One of the top worked rows. It is hard to photograph grafts. It is even harder to photograph rows of them which is why noone ever does. Rootstocks grow kind of crazy but the rows stay “somewhat” straight. Usually if i have a random pear tree growing in there it got top worked also. There could be ohxf 97, BET , callery etc. In these rows. Some rows even have harbins. I’m consistent when i plant them, but things happen! The rows with harbin have all harbins for that part of the row. It was around 2017 or 2018 when Oregon was not shipping rootstock due to a virus. The harbin were planted around that time frame.
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I checked my pears today. I have a few or more that should produce. I’m wondering whats going on with this one though. Its supposed to be a Kieffer along with one next to it. They were my first pears planted from Tractor Supply and dropped last year due to a late freeze. No pears on one and orange growth on the other with pears. The others came from nurseries and dont look like this.
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Thats quince rust on that pear. Pick off the fruits and next year you will need to spray for that. Thankfully both pears dont have it. Here is a thread where i would post those photos Pear Rust
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I didnt see your link before responding. Ill check that out. Theres about 4 billion cedars surrounding the area. Im either going to have to live with the disease or topwork it I suppose. Ill read through that thread to figure out the best option.
I have a couple other Kieffer pears. One from Walmart had black spots for 2 years before clearing itself. The one from Century Farm Orchards has been clean. It has the first pears forming this year and they look clean so far.
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I have one other that has been struggling. The bark looks checkered or weathered. It did grow a new leader this year. I was going to replace it this year if that continued. Sorry to throw all my issues out there haha.
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Im guessing sunburn if those are the options. Its been like that for a few years.
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Slow growth, cracking bark, water sprouts below the affected area are all signs of virus infection.
I dont believe this tree had watersprouts from the rootstock. The picture is about 2 feet up with a new healthy-looking shoot growing off the trunk. The main trunk just fizzled out and looks bad but the new shoot looks fine even though the trunk above and below dont.
The pear next to it I have suspecions may be a watersprout rootstock. Its by far my thickest trunk (though not particularly tall for the girth). It almost seemed like it had thorns the past two years. I had to cut a watersprout back on that one twice. I thought i got it straightened out but i have my doubts with thorn-like growth and no pears on a precocious variety. The rootstock is ohx97. Perhaps they both got diseases.
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Hopefully everyone had a great year for grafting so far. Anyone have any problems with compatability? Seems like most people did well. I’m going to do a few more this year. Have another 60 or more extra rootstocks available. Want to save most of those for next year. They are all BET. Here are a few more i did the last couple of weeks.
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Here is one from last year. May have a few pears on it next year. We have been in a drought at my property or it would have caught up with the other pears in the photo by now. The ponds down about 4 or 5 foot and normally it would be full this time of year. Those cleft grafts heal quickly when done correctly.
This was the tree about 1 year ago in late May.
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Tree#1 is doing great today. Despite being chomped by deer, at what I thought to be a critical stage, it still set several feet of growth. It’s now got bigger canopy than every pear I planted since 2021.
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This callery is behind my tool shed and growing in somewhat loose chert. Should be easy to dig up and transplant.
If I get my way… it will be growing at my daughters place next spring and sporting a new kieffer top.
Now is a good time to scout and id callery for grafting… or in my case transplanting and then grafting.
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