[brianbishop]

I have had a "family Pear" conference x buer louise for five years and have not had a single flower on it in all that time. After reading RHS book Pruning & Training I have this spring resorted  to ring barking it . Fingers crossed this will shock it into flowering next year. As for waiting to see if a pear is going to flower it is very easy to tell the difference between flower and leaf buds, the flower buds are much bigger and fatter.
Bish

UPDATE:- I posted this last year  and can now confirm that my pear is  just about to break flower!!!
Bish

[Chaz1985]

That's great news.

The pear I bought last year is flowering. Just hoping the frost or wind doesn't get them.

[Yorkie]

Hurrah!

[Trillium]

Fantastic. I have the opposite problem: my pear buds when we get unexpected frosts and the blossoms die  Have since solved this by draping a sheet of row cover over the tree with clips for the night.

[Totty]

Lovely to see things flower for the first time. I planted an apricot in a cooler spot that receives sun, but not in winter two years ago. It's flowering well now, and later than it's supposed to, maybe due due planting in a cooler spot. Not going to get hit by frost this year anyway.

Totty

[gobs]

Oh, say that again! I was just thinking, how all the apricot blossom shall be frosted next week...