By Karensusan63
Angus,
Scotland 
Pear fruit failures. I have had my pear tree for five years. It's on dwarfing rootstock and I'm pretty sure it is a self pollinator, as I don't tend to buy fruit that isn't self-pollinating. Anyway, every year the blossom is great and the pears seem to set. They grow to about the size of a sunflower seed and then they all drop off. Now, last year someone said perhaps they aren't properly pollinated. So, assuming the tree is NOT a self-pollinator, my question is, would the flowers not be pollinated by all the ornamental Weeping Pear trees that are growing in every garden in the street behind mine? Thanks for reading my question! Here is a photo of how they look right now....
Wonderful news...the pear tree finally set fruit, only a few, about 4 to be precise, but all ripening nicely other than the one the gales blew off which is in my kitchen!
9 May, 2011
Answers
Hmm...not what I wanted to hear Owdboggy, as you can imagine, but I may have to accept that I will never get a pear to eat off my tree....so sad....:((
9 May, 2011
No hope for me then Karen!! At least we can both enjoy the bonny blossom.
Have you tried (maybe a job for next year now) giving the flowers a helping hand with pollinating with using a wee paintbrush or something? Worth a shot maybe?
9 May, 2011
That's an Idea Donna! I could try that. They come out so early don't they...and I suppose the numbers of bees are quite limited up here at that time...perhaps that's why they don't do so well.....mmm....worth a try!
9 May, 2011
Hello Karensusan! I have two pear trees in my (very) little 'orchard' (don't laugh!) and they both do really well over here in NI. When I was buying them, I was told that even though some of them are self-pollinators, they do better if they do have a different variety planted nearby. Now, whether it was to make me buy two trees or not, I'm not sure, but they have been great fruiters for me. I have a Conference and a Comice du Doyenne, so maybe yours is just lonely and needs a wee friend to keep it company!! I've never heard of using the weeping pear as a pollinator, but I suppose there's no reason why not, it's in the same family! Interesting question Karensusan!
9 May, 2011
Ah, there you go! A Northern Pear tree! Wonderful news! Yes, I think I should get another one Libet. It's little tiny embryonic fruits are standing up proudly just now, there are loads of them! Thanks for the encouragement. x
10 May, 2011
Forgot about the Ornamental pear part of the question. There is no reason at all why pollen from one of them should not work.
Don't forget that much of N.I. is warmer than Angus. Trying to pollinate with a brush is probably the best option as long as you take the pollen from another tree rather than from the one.
10 May, 2011
Ha ha! Can just see myself wandering around the neighbours gardens with a paintbrush...NOT!! I have a pic of the tree which I will upload later and you will see it is covered in tiny fruits....at the moment! Ave. min winter temp. in Carnoustie -1C Owdboggy. Don't forget I am a mile from the beach and people actually swim in the sea here every summer...no kidding...no wetsuits or anything! lol! :) Angus Glens...a different climate altogether! In fact, my friend 6miles up the road has a different climate!
10 May, 2011
Positively tropical is Carnoustie!
10 May, 2011
No problem Karensusan! :0)) At the very least you'll have another tree to give you some great spring blossom! Good luck!
10 May, 2011
Ah well in that case............................not the cold then, probably a lack of pollination.
We get frost right up until the end of June most years.
10 May, 2011
That's the thing, I've decided to keep it whatever it does, because of the gorgeous early blossom...and it makes a great host for Clematis princess Diana! I've added a photo taken today...we'll see what happens this year!
10 May, 2011
Pears are generally self pollinating. To solve the problem of pollination , graft some hardy pear bud on one of the young branches of your pear tree. No need to plant another tree.You can Karen graft many varieties on your pear and enjoy the flowers and the fruits of many varieties.Pears generally suffer because they flower very early.
17 May, 2011
Thank you Arwadoo. I remember seeing some beautiful pears in the garden of the House of Dun which is some 20 miles north of here....so definitely not the cold. At the moment, the pear fruitlets are still on the tree, and they are looking fine....
17 May, 2011
You are actually a bit far north for Pears to be honest. The general rule is that they do not do well north of a line from the Trent to the Mersey. It could well be that you are just too cold for the fruit to grow successfully. We have 4 pear trees here and in a cold Spring we get very little fruit on them.
9 May, 2011