Blooming now in SouthWest Arkansas. Smelling up the place but looking nice.
Callery Pear
Scientific Name
Pyrus calleryana Decne. (ITIS)
Common Name
Callery pear, Bradford pear
Native To
East Asia (Culley 2017)
Date of U.S. Introduction
P. calleryana was first imported in 1908; the ‘Bradford’ cultivar was first sold commercially in 1961
Means of Introduction
Originally imported and cultivated to develop pear trees resistant to fire blight; later cultivars (such as ‘Bradford’) were developed and sold as ornamental landscaping trees
Impact
Forms dense thorny thickets, produces flowers with an offensive odor, and produces large amounts of fruit that litter sidewalks. Additionally, the ‘Bradford’ cultivar is extremely susceptible to damage from storms due to branches having narrow crotch angles; these trees will also split under their own weight after 15-20 years of growth. (Culley 2017; McMillen et al. 2019)
