Super tangled Bradford pear clump

[canoeguide]

This clump of root suckers was growing around the base of a landscape tree and had been covered by plastic and mulch for at least 1 year, which has led to the growth of very curvy and tangled shoots. While sawing off this clump and other similar growth from the soil around the landscape tree, I noticed that after this was cut off it still had some roots and might be interesting. Knowing the invasive and hardy nature of Callery/Bradford pear, I decided to pot this up and see if it might survive. I dusted the entire base with rooting hormone and secured it using screws and wire.

What can I do to improve the development of roots and success of this?

 

[SniffingKrylon]

I don’t know but I hope it makes it, really interest clump.

 

[CWTurner]

That's an upside-down trunk, right?
CW

 

[canoeguide]

That's an upside-down trunk, right?
CW

Nope, but it does look a bit like it is! How it's shown here is precisely how it was growing in the ground. In this crude drawing, the black line is the soil level, and I cut the bottom of this thing on the red line. The top twisted branches are suckers (not roots). They had been repeatedly pruned for years, and spent the last year under plastic and mulch trying to grow.

 

[Cable]

Those few wisps of root might be enough to sustain it while it sends out more. Will be interesting to see what happens. My gut tells me it won't work.

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

bright shade, keep it moist, in a month or two, move to get morning sun, afternoon shade. Hopefully it will survive. Could be cool.

 

[canoeguide]

About a month later: not much growth, but it's still alive. The parent landscape tree only leafed out within the last week.

 

[0soyoung]

The prospects for this (that I can imagine) are spectacular. Right now I am bothered by how flat the top is = that would be my immediate development focus (but, gotta get it growing vigorously first, of course).

 

[just.wing.it]

Whaaaat! So cool!
Keep that thing alive!

 

[canoeguide]

Whaaaat! So cool!
Keep that thing alive!

I have been keeping the soil moist and it currently gets maybe 2 hours of early morning sun just after dawn, then bright indirect light. Doing the 2-step into the garage any nights that it's going below 40f.

Fingers crossed.

 

[Schmikah]

This is completely useless, and off topic, but as everyone in my neighborhood has said about the bradford pears in my yard (all but one has fallen down), "Is that a Bradford Pear? It is? Well that thing's gonna fall down any day now. You know they fall down when they get that tall."

Alternately:

"Is that a Bradford Pear? You know all mine have already fallen down. I bet that one won't make it much longer."

 

[canoeguide]

This is completely useless, and off topic, but as everyone in my neighborhood has said about the bradford pears in my yard (all but one has fallen down), "Is that a Bradford Pear? It is? Well that thing's gonna fall down any day now. You know they fall down when they get that tall."

Alternately:

"Is that a Bradford Pear? You know all mine have already fallen down. I bet that one won't make it much longer."

As landscape trees, they've got multiple problems: invasive, suckers (see this thread), weak and narrow branch crotches that break in storms, under ice or snow loads, or finally, when the tree just grows too large. You'll rarely see one older than 30 years that isn't gangly or ready to break.

 

[Carol 83]

This is completely useless, and off topic, but as everyone in my neighborhood has said about the bradford pears in my yard (all but one has fallen down), "Is that a Bradford Pear? It is? Well that thing's gonna fall down any day now. You know they fall down when they get that tall."

Alternately:

"Is that a Bradford Pear? You know all mine have already fallen down. I bet that one won't make it much longer."

Sad but true. We used to have them lining the driveway and a big one in the yard. Lost all of them to wind/ice storms. The last two behind our house, my husband had cut down so they wouldn't fall on the house when they bit it.

 

[Michael P]

Bradford pear, the tree that self-destructs just when it gets big enough to look good in the landscape.

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

Bradford pear, a tree with built in obsolescence, it does last about three times the life span of a Honda Accord.

 

[Yosemite Goat]

Any updates to this tree?

 

[canoeguide]

Any updates to this tree?

I'm not going to call it dead yet, but it's on the deathbed. It kept trying to push leaves until maybe July, but they only ever reached thumbnail size (at best) and there were maybe a dozen+ *total*. Then, they would turn black from the tips backward until they were completely black and dead. Assuming a fungus, I treated this with copper fungicide every 10-14 days throughout the late spring and summer. It presently has zero leaves, but still passes the "scratch test" where there's green/living tissue underneath. I've learned to not throw anything out, so I'll protect it from the worst of the cold this winter and see what happens next year. I'm giving this a near-zero percent chance, but it was a lark to begin with. A little disappointing though, because this was pretty unique.

 

[canoeguide]

A quick non-update on this one: still green under the bark and put away for the winter. Let's see what April brings.

 

[0soyoung]

 

[canoeguide]

It's still alive and has pushed these tiny leaves within the last 2-3 weeks.

This got a good spray of Bayer 3-in-1 after the photo was taken to take care of the mealybug(s). Last year the tiny leaves turned black pretty quickly due to fire (or some other) blight, so I'm taking care to keep leaves dry and spraying with copper sulfate occasionally. Other than the morning sun, bright shade, and careful watering, is there much else I can do to get this in a more energy-positive state? This had almost zero roots when collected, so I suppose it's fighting the chicken-and-egg problem of too few roots and too little leaf surface area to gain energy to produce more.