[Caddi fuller-teabags]

Hello all.  Having resolved my bee problem (they went somewhere else of their own accord) I thought I would ask for your advice.

I have a couple of questions about pears.

Our plot has a pear tree  about six inches from a plum tree which is seriously poorly.  The pear tree has been productive this year but the pears are still hard and not huge.  They look like conference pairs but are slightly pink where they are ripening.    I understand (from tonight's Gardeners World) that I am to lift the pears to a horizontal angle and if they come away then they are ready to remove from the tree to ripen.  I can see problems with this as I have not attained five foot (and never will now).

So the first question is- should I try and prune the tree (at least eight foot tall, btw) and if so, when and how?

The second is - would it be folly to try and move it?  Apart from the diseased plum which is so close to the pear, the siting of the pear seems a bit poor: it is on the very edge of the plot, right next to a hedge and does not get much sun.

Any suggestions will be gratefully read.

[richyrich7]

Q2 yes don't move it unless you can get a huge rootball up with it, so don't move it, if its fruiting it's reasonably happy were it is. Can you not just chop down the plum ?

Never pruned a plum before think Muntjac is your man for this one he has some.

[mkhenry]

Until some one else comes along I will give it a go.
Firstly over pruning can be very bad for a mature tree.Pinching out of the tips is a bad idea also.
If your lucky the tree you discribe is Onward.(off Doyenne du Comice)or if not it may be Doyenne du Comice itself.Not so lucky.Both do best with a pollinating partner,but DDC requires warmth and shelter and makes up its own mind to fruit or not.Onward is happy enough in most conditions,except heavy frosts,but does not store so well and gives up in October.In spring give a sprinkling of growmore and mulch the base but avoid the bark :cry: .
So I would Leave it were it is at least until you are sure what it is.
As to the plum tree it seems to have given up anyway,so put the old dear out of its misery.Most plums do need a partner to fruit and survive
The other problem is unless it was grafted onto Pixie stock it could grow up to 20-30 feet depending on what it is .Some are only 10 -15 ft tall but can have a big spead.

[muntjac]

wait till winter and  prune the pear to open up the crownm only taking out any diseases wood . if IF  the plum is only small then you can attempt to move that . take a spade and cut a ring about 3 ft from the trunk . now dig down to 2ft . look for the first sifgns of the root ball by digging it away around the remaining soil . until you contact the first of the 1/2 inch roots cut this back to the last branch of the thick 3/4 inch roots . now cut under the tree using a spade try to retain the root ball mass . when you have freed the tree from the ground . you will have dug back to about 2ft by this time removing soil from the root ball . now digging a new hole in a sunny position to a few inches more than the  depth of the hole you took it out off . break up the soil in the base of the hole add hoof and horn and some compost .now with help lift the root ball onto a tarpaulin and transfer it to the new site . lowering it carefully into the hole you want to keep the graft joint just above the soil level so allow enogh to make it so . now put some more compost and hoof n horn around the sides at the bottom .( you want new roots to come out of the lower part of the ball ) now back fill the hole wityh soil and tramp down the sides as you fill with heavy feet and boots . make sure it is very firm indeed . now pile the remaining soil over the rest of the root ball making sure you do not go above the graft joint. now take a 6ft / 8ft post  and knock it in at a 45 ' degree angle  so that the post lays alongside the trunk 3/4 the way up  now secure this with an old inner tube  wrapping it around the post and the tree in a figure of 8 .nail the 2 ends to the post tightening the rubber to the trunk so that it does not rock ...... now water the whole thing with a a hose for 15 mins or lots of water cans . soaking the ground  , trim back the branches and stems growing out from the plum and any diseased wood  try to make a tear drop shape as you look at it . remove any branches that cross over in the centre  use a tree wound healer on the open ends of both the pear and the plum. now leave till spring and hopefully this will have taken .

[mkhenry]

wait till winter and  prune the pear to open up the crownm only taking out any diseases wood . if IF  the plum is only small then you can attempt to move that . take a spade and cut a ring about 3 ft from the trunk . now dig down to 2ft . look for the first sifgns of the root ball by digging it away around the remaining soil . until you contact the first of the 1/2 inch roots cut this back to the last branch of the thick 3/4 inch roots . now cut under the tree using a spade try to retain the root ball mass . when you have freed the tree from the ground . you will have dug back to about 2ft by this time removing soil from the root ball . now digging a new hole in a sunny position to a few inches more than the  depth of the hole you took it out off . break up the soil in the base of the hole add hoof and horn and some compost .now with help lift the root ball onto a tarpaulin and transfer it to the new site . lowering it carefully into the hole you want to keep the graft joint just above the soil level so allow enogh to make it so . now put some more compost and hoof n horn around the sides at the bottom .( you want new roots to come out of the lower part of the ball ) now back fill the hole wityh soil and tramp down the sides as you fill with heavy feet and boots . make sure it is very firm indeed . now pile the remaining soil over the rest of the root ball making sure you do not go above the graft joint. now take a 6ft / 8ft post  and knock it in at a 45 ' degree angle  so that the post lays alongside the trunk 3/4 the way up  now secure this with an old inner tube  wrapping it around the post and the tree in a figure of 8 .nail the 2 ends to the post tightening the rubber to the trunk so that it does not rock ...... now water the whole thing with a a hose for 15 mins or lots of water cans . soaking the ground  , trim back the branches and stems growing out from the plum and any diseased wood  try to make a tear drop shape as you look at it . remove any branches that cross over in the centre  use a tree wound healer on the open ends of both the pear and the plum. now leave till spring and hopefully this will have taken .

Decide very carefully where you are going to site it.It will dominate that area.As I have already said it may get to 15 ft or even up to 30 ft.You will need to keep tight control of it every year.

[Caddi fuller-teabags]

Thank you.

Sounds like moving the plum is going to be a big job. Bearing in mind that we have only just taken on this allotment and have a lot of work to get it up to scratch, I wonder if it is worth so much work moving what appears to be a diseased plum.

I might leave the pear as it is but treat it more carefully.  Perhaps I just need steps!

I did notice that our neighbour in the plot accross the path has a pear tree - how near does a partner tree have to be for pollenation?


A moment's silence then for the plum tree (bye bye poor plum).

Caddi

[richyrich7]

I might leave the pear as it is but treat it more carefully.  Perhaps I just need steps!

Get a long handled pruner and you can always make a net to attach to it to collect the plums.

I did notice that our neighbour in the plot accross the path has a pear tree - how near does a partner tree have to be for pollenation?


A moment's silence then for the plum tree (bye bye poor plum).

Caddi

Thats near enough bees will travel a long way,

IMHO if the plum's diseased get rid they are cheap enough to buy,  RIP plum  :twisted: