The nursery gave me this almost dead Bartlett Pear. What are the best things I can do to keep it alive?

[I_I_am_not_a_cat]

I went to a local nursery and found this Bartlett Pear that was barely alive. I asked if they would sell it to me at a discount and they gave it to me for a $20 pot deposit. I got it home and transplanted it into a mix of the soil it came from and some pumice and pre-made bonsai soil. There was no root ball to speak of and hardly any smaller roots--I wish I had gotten a picture, but somehow missed that.

It has been 3 weeks and the leaves have grown. I kept it under a sun sail that allows for partial shade, but it still gets full early morning and late afternoon/evening sun.

I have not fertilized or done anything other than the trunk chop.

Suggestions appreciated--even if it is to leave it alone other than making sure it does not dry out.

At the nursery:


Here is a closeup of the leaves the day I bought it:


Here is a closeup of the leaves just a couple of days ago:

 

[Tieball]

I would avoid any further trunk or branch pruning and chopping. The best time to prune a Bartlett Pear is in late winter…before bud swelling but at the end of winter. Keep it watered for the rest of this summer season.

Is your objective a bonsai tree or a full size land tree?

Are the branches up-high alive? (I only see growth from the ground level)

 

[RoadManDenDron]

It looks to me like the growth here is from the rootstock and not the grafted bartlett

I would also suggest keep on top of watering and don't stress it out any extra

If there is no growth up top the grafted section is probably dead, still possible to make something from the root stock though

 

[rockm]

It also looks to me like the top part (scion--grafted) of the tree is dead. That's why the new growth at the bottom.

 

[TN_Jim]

Agree with @rockm.

I would cut it at the lowest branch at least if it is dead; otherwise, it can just blow over in the wind and stress it more.

 

[Tieball]

Agree with @rockm.

I would cut it at the lowest branch at least if it is dead; otherwise, it can just blow over in the wind and stress it more.

I would check a couple of top branches first to be sure.

I went to a local nursery and found this Bartlett Pear that was barely alive. I asked if they would sell it to me at a discount and they gave it to me for a $20 pot deposit. I got it home and transplanted it into a mix of the soil it came from and some pumice and pre-made bonsai soil. There was no root ball to speak of and hardly any smaller roots--I wish I had gotten a picture, but somehow missed that.

It has been 3 weeks and the leaves have grown. I kept it under a sun sail that allows for partial shade, but it still gets full early morning and late afternoon/evening sun.

I have not fertilized or done anything other than the trunk chop.

Suggestions appreciated--even if it is to leave it alone other than making sure it does not dry out.

At the nursery:
View attachment 495443

Here is a closeup of the leaves the day I bought it:
View attachment 495444

Here is a closeup of the leaves just a couple of days ago:
View attachment 495445

You mention that you chopped the trunk after purchase from the nursery. How far down did you chop the trunk? Any photo of the current tree?

 

[rockm]

Looking at the latest photo of the leaves, it appears that everything above the soil line is dead. Those shoots are growing off of roots under the soil, which is what pears and apples do when they suffer catastrophic damage to the their tops...

 

[I_I_am_not_a_cat]

@Tieball

You mention that you chopped the trunk after purchase from the nursery. How far down did you chop the trunk? Any photo of the current tree?

Here is the full trunk that I kept, about 18 inches above the new growth. My plan is to one day make it into a bonsai, if it lives.

 

[FreshAirSunshine]

Is there a ring of green right below the bark? If not that part is dead still and you should cut lower. I think the prevailing thought is it’s dead almost all the way down to the new growth. Id suggest scratching the bark from top down towards the bottom until you see some green and chopping to that.

 

[FreshAirSunshine]

Is there a ring of green right below the bark? If not that part is dead still and you should cut lower. I think the prevailing thought is it’s dead almost all the way down to the new growth. Id suggest scratching the bark from top down towards the bottom until you see some green and chopping to that.

You can look it up as cambium - if that’s dead you won’t be getting growth at that height

 

[I_I_am_not_a_cat]

Is there a ring of green right below the bark? If not that part is dead still and you should cut lower. I think the prevailing thought is it’s dead almost all the way down to the new growth. Id suggest scratching the bark from top down towards the bottom until you see some green and chopping to that.

Any reason not to just leave it as is at about 18" tall? I figured that might become a cool jin at some point in the future.

 

[FreshAirSunshine]

Any reason not to just leave it as is at about 18" tall? I figured that might become a cool jin at some point in the future.

Oh that’s totally fine - just giving insight in case you are anticipating leaving out higher up that there’s a check to see if that’s possible. I would note that jins on deciduous trees tend not to last as long since they’re low-resin trees, so if you end up going that route you may need to preserve it with a wood preserver or glue in the future.

 

[Tieball]

I would leave the remaining trunk section attached for now. In the spring you can chop it back further to the point you see fitting your image…if desired. Or just leave the dead trunk section alone for awhile and focus on the new growth. The tree has already started to partition off from the dead area. Pear tree woods a hardwood. This is good winter protection.

I’d leave the trunk section as it could actually be a nice unique deadwood feature in stark contrast to the curved form the new growth should provide. The trunk is also a great handle for pulling and gripping to get at the new growth in spring, and not mishandle the new growth, should you want to pull it out, root-check it and repot it in a different soil substrate. The trunk also provides a stable natural component for securely tying up new growth developments. No hurry. Leave the trunk section as is for now.

You'll determine a desired look when you’re ready to chop it down further or otherwise treat it as a deadwood area. Thinking…..a short orchard-like stump properly executed would look great….ending up with the dead trunk stump exiting the ground at an angle while the new tree grows more upright. I see possibilities. The challenge now is to be less disruptive and get the new growth to continue healthy in preparation for changing seasons and the cold-time the tree needs.

My own Bartlett Pear tree is maintaining stability right now with it returning from drought drama caused by being dug up a few years ago, stuffed into a nursery pot, ignored and then hidden to far away.

 

[I_I_am_not_a_cat]

I’d leave the trunk section as it could actually be a nice unique deadwood feature in stark contrast to the curved form the new growth should provide.

This is what I was thinking. I do not have any vision for it yet but wanted the option of a deadwood feature.

I would note that jins on deciduous trees tend not to last as long since they’re low-resin trees, so if you end up going that route you may need to preserve it with a wood preserver or glue in the future.

After reading your note, I looked up jin and realized it was not what I meant. What I would like to use the stump for is shari.

For my own education and any other newbies reading this, I found this:

A "Jin" is a bare-stripped part of branch, a "Shari" is a barkless part of trunk, and an "Uro" is a hollow, irregularly-shaped wound in the trunk.

 

[FreshAirSunshine]

This is what I was thinking. I do not have any vision for it yet but wanted the option of a deadwood feature.


After reading your note, I looked up jin and realized it was not what I meant. What I would like to use the stump for is shari.

For my own education and any other newbies reading this, I found this:

A "Jin" is a bare-stripped part of branch, a "Shari" is a barkless part of trunk, and an "Uro" is a hollow, irregularly-shaped wound in the trunk.

Haha in my reply I assumed Shari since there’s no branches but yep! You’re correct