Ornamental pear - Pyrus calleryana

The ornamental pear is also known as a Callery pear or Bradford pear. Unlike a regular pear tree, which bears large edible fruit, the callery pear has very small woody fruit that are eaten by birds. The small fruit make it easy for cities to plant as public trees. This hybrid plant was developed in the 1950's as a solution to "fire blight", and given official status by the Department of Agriculture in 1964.

Ornamental pear trees grow to 25' tall. They are resistant to disease, but they’re vulnerable storm damage due to their rapid growth rate. About fifteen years ago two ornamental pear trees on Nightingale Ave fell over after a strong winter storm. A few months later a third callery pear on the same street was removed by the city because the trunk was beginning to rot.

Because of their structural weakness, Callery pears have been legally banned from sale in Ohio. In Oct 2021 they will also be banned from sale in South Carolina. This article from the Greenville (SC) Post and Courier explains the history of the Callery pear and the subsequent inclusion on the South Carolina State Plant Pest List. Nurseryman Durant Ashmore also wrote a blog post The Curse of the Bradford Pear pleading with people not to plant them.



1608 Nightingale Ave, Sunnyvale, CA


Although ornamental pear trees don't produce "normal" fruit, they do produce small woody fruit that can only be eaten by birds. The fruit below are about 1 cm in diameter. The leaves are 2"-3" long.



Where to find them: Ornamental pears are very common in Sunnyvale. Some big spots are the south end of Morse Ave, N. Eden Ave, Madrone Ave and W. California Ave between Pajaro and N. Pastoria.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Sweetgum - Liquidamber styraciflua

Image
The second most common street tree in Sunnyvale is the Sweetgum ( Liquidamber styraciflua ), also known simply as liquid amber. Sweetgum are tall, shady trees with five-pointed star-shaped leaves (similar to maple leaves) and hard, spiked fruits. These trees were very popular in the Bay Area in the mid to late 20th century because they grow quickly and are both drought resistant and disease resistant. Unfortunately, the spiked fruits are a hazard to pedestrians. And it’s almost impossible to push a baby stroller over liquid amber fruits. In dry climates, such as Santa Clara County, when the trees become mature the strong roots cause expensive damage to sidewalks.  Many cities have long-term urban forestry plans to gradually replace all sweetgum trees with an alternate species. Raynor Park along Partridge Ave, Sunnyvale, CA The leaves are palmately-lobed (i.e. the lobes radiate around a common point) and consist of 3-7 lobes up to 5"-7" wide. Where to find them:  Some examples
Read more

Maidenhair - Gingko balboa

Image
The fourth most common street tree in Sunnyvale is the Maidenhar ( Gingko balboa ) tree, commonly known as the gingko.  Ginkgo is a “living fossil” because it has not changed in the past 270 million years. It is the oldest tree species in the world ( Wikipedia ). It is only found in the wild in China but has been cultivated across the world. Some specimens in China are believed to be over 2,000 years old. Ginkgo biloba is dioecious (they have separate sexes). The male trees are highly allergenic, while the female plants are not. The leaves are fan-shaped with  veins radiating out into the fan blade. In the fall the leaves turns a brilliant yellow. Inverness at the corner of Nightingale Ave. Sunnyvale, CA The leaves are fan-shaped, usually 2"-4" long. Where to find them:    Gingkos are very common along Sunnyvale streets. Some examples can be found on Helena Dr, Ontario Dr and Quail Rd between Dunford and Homestead.
Read more

Fan Tex Ash - Fraxinus v. 'Rio Grande'

Image
The Fan Texas (Fan-Tex) ash is a species of American ash native to Texas. The proper name is Fraxinus v. 'Rio Grande'. They are popular ornamental trees because of their drought tolerance and pollution tolerance. Over the past ten years Sunnyvale has planted many new Fan-Texas ash trees to replace older or damaged trees. Youn g Fan Texas ash trees grow very fast and require pruning within the first five years to prevent them from growing into a huge mess of branches. The Fan-Tex ash grows to 35' tall.  1616 Nightingale Ave, Sunnyvale, CA The leaves are 4-10" long, pinnately compound with three, five or seven leaflets 1.5"-2" long. The leaves are shaped like a traditional maple leaf with a finely serrated margin. Where to find them:  Nightingale and Teal (between Dunford and Lillick) have the most Fan-Tex ash trees in Birdland. There are also many Fan-Tex ash trees along Lakebird and Lakehaven in the Lakewood Village neighborhood, and Lewiston Dr near Serra Pa
Read more