Help my asian pear tree got some girdling

Question

I'm located in south NJ. last year I realized that my tree was bowing over from the weight of the fruits. so not thing this through then, I tied some rope to straighten it over time thinking I was going g to remove it when I see it's all better. I promise I did check in the beginning of the spring and looked safe to leave on and this is what I saw now.... Is it tolate, did I kill my tree or is there a way to save it? fruits

Answer 1

I have seen a row of trees planted and they did not remove the wire around the trunk that was attached to T-Bars. Turns out, for those trees, you are creating a weak spot on the trunk and when a windy day comes along the trunk snaps at the point.

What your tree has now is a series of weak points that could fail during strong wind or wind and a heavy load of pears.

Given that most Manchurian pears are grafted onto other pear or quince rootstock for hardiness or vigor there is no point in cutting back the tree or it will just sucker from the rootstock and you are unlikely to get the pears you want, or any at all.

You could do one of two solutions:

• carefully remove the rope. Replace with old bicycle tire inner tubes or more professional tie backs that you should be able to get from a hardware or agriculture store. Most pears tend to bear heavily in alternate years so be sure to prune and thin your fruit every year so the load on the branches is reduced. If the tree does break then grub it out and replant. As this plant can get well over 20 feet tall in some areas if you want fruit you need to shape it with pruning anyway.
• some gardeners would also consider this plant to be a lost cause at this point. If you prefer to not have to worry about damage then grub it out now while it is smaller and replant.