Let's talk about my Bradford pear tree
 

I have a large Bradford pear tree. I noticed today that it has a big split, about 18' long going all the way through the main trunk. The tree shows no sign of failure, is growing as normal, but I'm sure it is only a matter of time. It is not endangering the house, or any overhead lines, but could do some damage to the car. How urgent is this? Something I need to take care of in a week or could I wait a while as long as I move the car during high winds?

More importantly, does anyone have any personal experience smoking meat using Bradford pear? I get conflicting reports from the BBQ sites.

I used to have a Bradford and then the wind blew. I no longer have a Bradford.

If it is split I would bet the next strong, windy storm we get it goes.

BBQ? I have no idea

http://msp153.photobucket.com/albums...95/lol_wut.jpg






Sorry, had to be done.

It's a mild flavor. I'm not passionate about the flavor either way. Might as well make use of it. BP's are very resilient. You might want to cut one side away and see if it recovers. Many BP's around here were split in half during severe ice-storms and have recovered nicely.

LMAO It did.

Screw large eye hooks into each half and chain the two halves together.

What did they do in the old days, before chains and hooks?

It has probably been split for a few weeks. I would have no idea which side to save, since the gap is only about an inch wide. Tree hasn't failed at all.

It would probably be a life time supply of smoking wood. A lifetime supply of an okay wood isn't necessarily a good thing. I guess I'll save some of it, but not all.

We used baling wire

I read somewhere about putting a large bolt through the tree. And how years later, when someone took a chainsaw to it, they would get a broken chain in the face.

If you mean to leave the chains on the outside, I don't thing the neighbors would appreciate the look.

:clap:

Last year a storm split a tree in the yard behind me in a similar fashion, then a squirrel fell into the split and couldn't get back out, and eventually died in there.

smoke that smokewagon.

Just a short length of chain between the two eye hooks.

One vote to keep the tree for a while.

Bradford pears are ornamental, they do not bear fruit.

LOL... it comes in tree color anyway....

http://www.surplusandadventure.com/i...n/sa-03195.jpg

pears are bad for splitting. Cut it out and replace it. Hell, you could probably plant another Bradford pear and have an identical tree in a few years.

Not that I'd recommend another bradford pear.

This tree was probably 25 years old. It's pretty big for a pear tree.

Bradford pears are terrible trees, especially in the Midwest. Though fast growing, they grow multiple trunks and are prone to splitting in ice storms. You won't find many nurseries that would recommend planting them unless you're a developer planting the common areas or a contractor looking to do the landscaping on the cheap.

My vote: cut it down

Burn it. BBQ.
Go with a Cleveland Select Pear.
More resistant to ice/wind damage.


http://www.advancedtree.com/tree_clevelandpear.htm

Well played.

Now it's a pair tree.

That's exactly what would do. Pick the half that is not aimed at the house and or car and cut the other half.

I would the whole thing.

?? Please fill in the missing word(s) big dog. __________________

If it is still doing good I would tie the tree together.. You could also get some wire ala old school fence wire..

THE WHOLE THING

If you really like it, just have it cabled. They attach a cable and winch it with sufficient tension.

The pears are known for losing large limbs, but it's not because the wood is weak, it's due to the very narrow angle that the limbs tend to grow out from each other.

It won't be super cheap, but whatever you do, don't fool yourself into thinking that rope or wire or some other amateur solution will work, and for goodness sake don't wrap anything around those trunk forks, you'll kill the tree.

We have two splitting sugar maples in our front yard and we had them both cabled *and* bolted a year ago. It will extend their life, but they'll never be showpieces.

Most all of the fruitwoods are nice and dense, they are close grained and take a good polish, too. If you don't want to use it for BBQ, just ring up a local woodworking or woodturning club, they'll likely haul it away for free for the wood.

I know this, yet it still had to be done.

UPDATE: I ended up doing nothing to the tree. Half of it fell into the driveway today at about 4:30 PM. So I left work and rented a Makita chainsaw from HomeDepot. It's dark now and the heat index is still 95. So the work goes pretty good for a while, then I start having trouble getting the chainsaw started. I'm getting exhausted just pulling on the rope. Finally I took it back to HD. Sure enough it starts on the first pull in the store. I take it back home, get is started and start making good progress again. Then I have trouble starting the chain saw again. I'm talking about 20 or more pulls without starting. My theory is that there is a giant spring inside the chain saw and they use all the times I've pulled the cord to wind the spring. I'll try again in the morning if I'm not too sore to get it started. Hopefully I'll be able to get the drive way cleared before I have to have the saw back at 9:00. Half the tree is still standing. I guess I'll take it down later.

This tree is huge. I'll throw the little branches on my brush pile in the back. I'm saving the wrist size branches for smoking -- I'll have a life time supply. I'll probably have more than a half cord of fire wood I'll end up giving away. I hope to save a few nice pieces to turn into lumber. I want to make a jewelry box for my daughter (she grew up climbing that tree) and maybe carve a bowl out of another piece.

I hope this tree doesn't end up killing me.

Damn man.

I'd recommend chaps, arborist safety glasses, and heavy gloves if you're inexperienced with a chainsaw.

Good move removing it.
Posted via Mobile Device

http://tobytobin.com/

This question came up a few weeks ago. Give it a shot. 980 KMBZ in KC, Sat 6-10am.

http://tobytobin.com/

This question came up a few weeks ago. Give it a shot. 980 KMBZ in KC, Sat 6-10am.

These trees suck. Everyone i have ever known who had one said the same thing. Split in half when the winds blew hard.

Dude. I would try to save it. A tree that size is not easily replaced. Use Skips idea of bailing wire and try to cinch it tight little by little to see if it will "grow" back together. Put an old piece of rubber hose etc under the wire to keep it from cutting into the tree. IMHO its worth a shot before you turn it into BBQ fuel.

It's never fun to lose a large tree, but seriously, a bradford pear tree is one of the faster growing trees out there. That's often why people plant them.

Plant another one (tree), but not another one (bradford pear) unless you like those falling branch or tree halves.

It is a nice hard wood. Carve it/turn it while it's still green or you'll hate yourself.

Totally amateur. If you really want to save a tree, hire a professional arborist. You're creating a liability with your bailing wire and hose. Let me guess, you probably advocate tapping elms to avoid weep or paint over wounds with "tree bandage."
Posted via Mobile Device

I got the driveway cleared, even though the chainsaw would only start once this morning. The guy at HD gave me half off on the rental, so I'm good. I'm going to use the fire wood to bribe my buddy with a chainsaw or some random dude off Craig's list to help me cut down the rest of the tree.