Kitchen Garden Forum

There’s a young pear tree in our garden, looks only a few years old, laden with pears. Teeny, tiny 1” x 3” solid pears (look like conference).

Are these harvestable? Or will I give anyone who braves them the raging trots?

Is the foliage green or silver - they sound a bit like the ornamental silver pear.

Green.

Might be a younger tree than you think Myrkk. Mine more or less cropped from the start with wee small hard fruit that actually didn't ripen but remained hard, the wasps seemed to like them still though! About 4 - 5 yrs after the fruit started getting bigger but then & even now, I still get the odd tiny ones usually along one branch which I pinch off. I had a good crop this year (I thought), but the wasps beat me to some of the best.

There is an article in the KG magazine you can find on line about summer pruning Pear trees, I was unaware you could summer prune them, always winter pruned but good article that makes sense.

Thanks Westi. I’ve been trying to suss out if I can move it and possibly fan it. For some reason the previous owner has planted a lot of trees in the middle of the lawn just by the raised beds and just under all the ?telephone cables? coming into the houses along this row. Sadly I think it and the others are all going to become fodder for the wood burner. Not something I’m going to enjoy doing as I hate chopping trees down. I’m not good at killing any plants (unless it’s growing in my veg patch when it shouldn’t be) but trees make me especially squeamish.

If you do have to remove the trees make their life useful, look up the German Hugelkultur growing method where you grow on beds prepped over logs. My new allotment neighbours are doing this as both work full time with 3yr old twins & the wood was resourced from the plot by cutting back the overgrown hedge row. I have to admit their plot has been very productive & pretty weed free. They built raised beds for the top up with the logs lining the bottom which was dug out a bit to sit them flat.

As it is a young tree I think you could move it successfully, if you dig a big hole with lots of soil attached so roots aren't damaged too much. I wouldn't try to fan it until it is settled in the new spot & showing it is happy so probably another year. I'm not sure whether it should be dormant before doing this but I would expect so, but noting your location it could be hard graft if left too to winter!