Fig tree; Asian pear trees; Good bye, (European) pear tree
To be saved so I can prune and pinch my fig tree out back, which has produced some figs in the past.
http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/fig/msg0907444325735.html
http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/fig/msg0611441718628.html?23
Prune and pinch? That doesn't sound very nice, does it? Well, when I moved in, this home insurance inspection guy came through and told me the fig tree was dead. this was in March or April 2005. It was tall , with long thick branches that reached out and up. More like a combination of a bush and a tree. So I started sawing the branches off, but not at the center, because I couldn't get in that close. I figured I'd start getting rid of this plant. But then I got distracted and abandoned this project, and, lo and behold, by late summer that year, the plant was fiercely sending out these new thin branches and even producing some figs. I ignored it a while longer, but now I'm wanting to really figure out how to care for it.
The house also came with a (European, I guess--never did figure out which type exactly) pear tree, which did make pears the first year, but since half the branches were broken off when a huge old mulberry crashed into it in June 2006, it hasn't been doing well. I'm about to have it removed, and next week or this weekend I will be planting two new trees. they are both Asian pear trees I got at Behnke. I got two different cultivars so they can cross-pollinate each other. Actually, most types need another cultivar in order to get fruit, I'm told (although it was said around Behnke that it might be possible that you could still get some fruit if you have a 20th c. by itself). I got some advice on how to plant, and also I was told to not let grass or weeds grow around the bottom of the tree and out to the drip line, because that will prevent the roots from getting enough air. But rather, put down mulch instead. The guy at behnke said, "These trees need a lot of room. After all, you're growing food. Are you ready for 40 pears?" I hope I get 40 pears. I could mail some out, because they keep for an amazingly long time--some types of Asian pears can keep for months in the fridge. I think the Twentieth Century Asian Pear is one of them-- that's one of the two cultivars I got.
I would post pics of the babies (the new trees I mean), but they're in my yahoo e-mail, which I have been having terrible trouble with today. I feel sad that I am going to be cutting down the (Euro) pear tree.
Wait-- here they are:
I know they don't look like much now, but Behnke dude actually told me also that they will fruit this year if left to their own devices. However, he recommended that I not allow them to fruit. I should pinch any developing fruit off so that the trees concentrate on growing this season. To the left is a product called Leaf-Gro, made in Montgomery County, Md. I'm going to use it as soil amendment and as the first mulch when I plant the trees.
I've already got Rufus at work digging the holes....
