The flowering pear bears bitter fruit

January 5, 2013 — When is a pear not a pear? Discover the difference between pear trees that produce crunchy fruit and those whose brittle branches just go snap, crackle and pop. Also, Mike interviews Dr. Bill Quarles, Director of the Bio Integral Resource Center about the tremendous reductions in pesticide spraying that have been achieve by California’s “Eco-Wise” certification program for professional exterminators.

I have a ‘Cleveland’ pear tree that’s 3 or 4 years old. No fruit yet. My friend’s pear tree took a few years before bearing fruit; should I just be patient? Or do I need to prune these tall limbs back? It looks ludicrous to me for them to be so high. Get the answer »