100 Species #36: Callery (Bradford) pear.

[urbpan]

The previous owner of the house planted this little Callery pear (Pyrus calleryana) just alongside the driveway.

The 'Bradford' strain of the Asian callery pear is one of the most common urban street trees, and it's not hard to see why. It explodes with a beautiful inflorescence in spring, provides decent shade in summer, and retains gorgeous autumn color long into November. It's tolerant to the various stresses of urban life (pollution, poor soil, compacted roots), and has few drawbacks. The fruit is an unimpressive little pebble that resists mammalian attempts to make food of it.

I have featured this tree several times in this journal, including its appearance as 365 Urban Species #324.

Comments

[jenhime.livejournal.com]

The fruit is an unimpressive little pebble that resists mammalian attempts to make food of it.

True, but my chickens LOVE them! Especially when they're a wee bit overripe.

[phlogiston-5.livejournal.com]

In addition to chickens apparently loving them, the ones outside the building I work in are frequently a stop over for Cedar Waxwings, which is an awfully pretty bird to stare at.