Need suggestions for our town to replace Bradford Pears
by AwkwardBalloonMan
Need suggestions for our town to replace Bradford Pears
by AwkwardBalloonMan
14 Comments
Looking for some advice from this sub! Basically, my town has a very cute pedestrian alleyway with some shops (pictured above), and lining the middle are Bradford pears. I have the opportunity along with some of the shop owners to get the trees removed and replaced, but I want to make sure we have native replacements ready to go so that they aren’t replaced with non-natives or ecologically non-beneficial nativars. As you can see in the photo it’s a narrow space, but only two stories before the trees could open their canopy. One of the food establishments is on our side because of how much crap the bradford pears drops, so I wouldn’t want to replace it with something equally “messy”.
All ideas welcome!
My first recommendation would be Dogwood *Cornus florida* however it might be slightly to big for the spots pictured above.
Eastern Redbud *Cercis canadensis* is native some parts of PA but you might be to far north for it? I don’t know climate change might make your area more habitable for it.
Common Serviceberry *Amelanchier arborea* is also an ok choice, but sometimes they can get pretty large relative to Bradford pear. (saw your comment, this is probably a poor choice if mess from a bradford pear is a concern)
American Hornbeam
Wait is the Philly city government taking suggestions?
Serviceberries, dogwoods, redbuds.
If you can track down Quercus prinoides, dwarf chinkapin oak, that would be a fun choice. It’s a smaller oak so it shouldn’t outgrow this area, it can tolerate shade and really poor soil, and acorns don’t get smushed like berries, so they should be easy to clean up. I don’t know what availability on this species looks like in your region (my understanding is that they aren’t super common in cultivation) but if you can get your hands on it, I think it would do great in this spot
Hazel alder is a favorite shrub from childhood, but I’m not sure if it would bush out too wide at the base for this application.
Also bald cypress is awesome for this especially if there is flooding or pollution. They get big though.
Witch hazel is one I find to be pretty obedient
Pear trees stink so bad…
The closest native replacement I’ve found is probably Tupelo Tower black gum, it stays pretty narrow and has fantastic fall folor
Where is this at?
Hawthorn, maybe?
Sourwood and service berry
Do you have native pears in your region? I hear Bradford pears make great root stock to graft onto and then you don’t have to go through the rigamarole of digging the trees out and replanting.
I’m seconding native dogwood and redbud. There are other gorgeous small native trees, but a lot of them are a bit more picky about their location.