I have a pear tree and the one side of the tree is dieing and i want to save it or plant another one like?
my questions is can i plant a pear tree from a branch of my exsisting pear tree and if i can can you please tekk me how to do so?
thank you

Reply to post by Dot, on April 27, 2002 at 10:36:20:

It is not too likely that you would get a good sturdy tree by rooting a cutting from your pear tree. The srpouts do not root too easily, and the root stock you get from that may not be too hardy. Most of the trees in nurseries are grafted. Your best bet to get a sturdy tree is to buy one at a nursery. Look for Chanticleer or Whitehouse callery pears. Do NOT buy a Bradford.

Reply to post by Dot, on April 27, 2002 at 10:36:20:

Dot, you don't identify the kind of pear you have. Perhaps it's a home orchard fruiting variety, or one of the ornamentals.
As Russ says, the best and quickest way is to get a similar tree already produced and ready to plant. However, many people find interest in trying to propagate trees by themselves.
First, if you wish to clone the tree you have, you should know what it is. If you don't, then you may be able to get someone else to help you identify it. The following information is from a text by Hartmann, Kester, and Davies, called Plant Propagation Principles and Practices.
Pyrus calleryana 'Bradford' can be T-budded onto P. calleryana seedlings (good luck finding any). It is not compatible with P. communis roots. It can also be rooted with 8000 ppm IBA talc...; the cutting wood should be firm and is taken June to August and rooted under mist in bark:sand or 1 peat:1 perlite:1 vermiculite media.
Evergreen pear (Pyrus kawakamii Hayata), is propagated by cuttings, or more commonly, by grafting onto P. calleryana seedlings. Bench grafting is done in midwinter using the cleft graft. The grafts can be planted in containers or in the nursery row.
Edible pears (Pyrus communis L.)are propagated by fall budding, using T-budding or chip budding on either seedling pear rootstocks or rooted quince cuttings. They are also started by whole-root grafting, using the whip or tongue method (you must read the book to understand this). For seedlings, pear seeds must first be stratified for 60 to 100 days at about 40 degrees F., then planted thickly about 1/2 inch deep in a nursery seedbed, where they are allowed to grow one season. The following spring they are dug, the roots and top cut back, and then they are transplanted to the nursery row, where they grow a second season, ready for budding in the fall.
Some pear cultivars, such as 'Old Home' and 'Bartlett', can be propagated by hardwood cuttings or by leafy cuttings under mist if treated with IBA...Own-rooted 'Bartlett' trees have shown excellent production with large, well-shaped fruit...
There is much more on seedling root stocks, relating to disease resistance. You can see that it isn't a casual endeavor.

Reply to post by Dot, on April 27, 2002 at 10:36:20:

Dot,

Before considering any propagation of your existing tree, it is important to know the causal agent responsible for your tree's decline. Many root fungus pathogens are NOT curable and other opportunistic fungus or bacteria my be in the sap, these could cause failure in your attempt's to make a start from your plant.

As Mark stated: identification (Fruit bearing or Flowering spp.) is also important.

Russ's advise is also significant.

However, before you propagate or plant - you need to find the cause of the previous failure. This may include soil analysis as well as physiological findings of plant samples.

Reply to post by Mark Goodwin, on April 27, 2002 at 10:36:20:

My question is this...are all Bradford Pears grafted? if so why.........then if so then progation by cuttings would not give you a true Bradford Pear since you are aquiring the cuttings from non-bradford pear rootstock....... then if that's the case ... why are Bradford's so popular....... because it is like roses not on their own stock....... cut past the graft and then you have whatever root stock you started with........ wouldn't that make the bradford pear a less desirable tree... or is the reasoning due to cloning ablilities for mass plantings..... anyway next question... since the bradford pear really has no fruit but strong limbs....... why cannot the fruiting pear be grafted onto the bradford to prevent the limbs from bending so when full of fruit .. since they are from the same genus.