I have four young pear trees that were purchased several years ago from St. Lawrence Nurseries. Three of the four, Ayers, Ure, and Nova are doing well. The fourth tree, Hudar... well, I'm concerned about it. When it first arrived, its tap root was twisted, actually "U" shaped. I could not straighten it without breaking it, so I planted it as it was. St. Lawrence Nurseries did not answer an email questioning its condition.

The tree is about 10 feet tall now. Last year it produced its first two pears, but our resident squirrels beat me to the fruit.
This year, the tree has probably only a couple of blossom clusters. And it does not seem to be outgrowing some strange bulges in stem growth. I'm sending along a picture of the tree, taken just a couple of days ago. (I hope you can zoom in on the picture.)
Does anyone know what is wrong with the tree? Is it worth saving, or should I cut it down and replace it with something else?


Thanks. Oh... I'm in western Massachusetts.
Kat

It looks like the tree has a gall, caused by an insect. You can read about it here:

http://www.ext.colostate.edu/p...

"most galls start in late spring and early summer when adult Insects become active and lay eggs"

...

"Although galls are conspicuous and unattractive, they rarely do any real damage to plants."

Thanks, Dave!

Interesting that the other three pear trees have no problem. We have another pear tree, purchased locally, a Kieffer, which also has no problem. We do have a few Pin Oak trees on the property. I'll have to go take a close look at them.

Thanks again.
Kat