One of the most popular landscape trees in the United States is the 'Bradford' pear (
Pyrus calleryana), often called the Callery pear. These trees promote themselves by offering gorgeous white flowers in early spring when not much else is blooming.
The 'Bradford' pear is related to the common pear, but the former is fruitless and rarely bothered by blight. It was introduced to the United States from China in the early 1990s, and it is said that the original tree is still growing strong at the USDA's Plant Introduction Station in Glendale, Maryland.
Despite its floral beauty, 'Bradford' isn't without problems. As the trees get bigger, growing grass beneath them becomes increasingly difficult because they cast such dense shade. They also have fairly shallow root systems and fairly weak wood, which means they are often the first to perish during wind or ice storms. Many landscape professionals and urban foresters feel that these trees have been overplanted.
The main problem with the 'Bradford' pear is that it tends to grow considerably wider as it ages, which becomes a problem for homeowners who failed to anticipate the tree's ultimate spread. Consider planting a different cultivar such as 'Aristocrat', 'Capital' or 'Chanticleer'. These varieties look nearly identical to 'Bradford' but are more columnar and narrow, even when they get older.
