Medium deciduous tree with an oval to pyramidal form. Mature height of about 10-12 m x 7-10 m wide.
Dense crown of foliage. Leaves are dark green glossy, simple, ovate with undulating margins, alternating on thornless branches, turning red in autumn. Thin, grey-black bark, which can be damaged by mechanical impact. Flowers are pure white and profuse in spring followed by small, pea-sized, red/brown fruits.
Tolerates a wide range of soil conditions including both slightly alkaline and acid soils. Tolerant of drought, poorly drained soils, compaction and air pollution. Grows well in limited soil space in urban areas. Transplants easily.
Prune trees early in their life to space lateral branches along a central trunk, otherwise not a lot of pruning required to develop good structure. Only buy trees with well-spaced branches. Tree will require periodic crown lifting to maintain clearances.
Fruit are persistent on tree with no significant litter problem.
‘Aristocrat’ pear is very susceptible to fire blight (Not an immediate concern in Australia). Trees can be infested with aphids and scale. Borers can attack damaged areas.
Good street tree, car parks, pavement cut outs other restricted soil spaces.
Ref:
Gilman, E. F., (1997), Trees for Urban and Suburban Landscapes, Delmar.
http://hort.ufl.edu/trees/PYRCALA.pdf
Northern trees; as seen at http://orb2.at.ufl.edu/TREESServlet?command=getNorthernTree&classoid=4840
Fleming’s Nurseries, Pty, Ltd, Monbulk, Australia.
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November 18, 2011 at 2:38 pm
Can you please help my manchurian pear trees I have planted an avenue of them on our farm but they are exhibiting leaf curl, can you advise me what to do? They are quite big trees about 6 foot, planted in a sunny position on our farm driveway to the house. The leaves start to curl at the top of the tree and then the lower ones curl, the leaves are healthy at the bottom until they start to make and curl. I would be very appreciative if you could make a suggestion.
Do you sell a cherry tree called Stella? Thank you Denise.
November 22, 2011 at 9:30 am
Dear Denise,
Thank you for your enquiry.
The symptom you describe may be attributed to the effect root death due to soil waterlogging. Excess water is just as bad for trees as too little water. Waterlogging excludes oxygen from the soil creating anaerobic conditions, results in reduced root function and can lead to root death. Signs of waterlogging can include:
• Yellowing or paleness and mottling of older leaves.
• Wilting of young shoots and leaves.
• Leaves may turn brittle and or curl while still green.
• Soil is wet and or water pools on soil surface or when a hole is dug, water pools at base.
• Fibrous root death occurs and the death of small ephemeral woody roots may follow. The dead roots become blackened and the bark may peel away.
• Sulfurous (rotten egg) smell in the soil caused by anaerobic decay of soil organic matter.
To check for waterlogging, dig a hole at the edge of the root ball of one your pears to the same depth as that of the rootball and examine the soil conditions. If waterlogging is the cause, you may need to improve site drainage. However, if the site is prone to waterlogging which cannot be rectified, then you should consider another, more appropriate species able to tolerate waterlogging.
With regard to your Stella Cherry query, Tree Logic is not a tree broker. However, Stella Cherry is readily available, at least in Melbourne.
Regards,
James