A friend has asked me to espalier a pear tree that is already 12 feet high. I don't think this is possible but does anyone know if this can be done at this stage of a tree's development?
Depends on what structure it has now. If it is pretty well settled into an unsuitable shape, with lots of thickish, main branches making a broader head, then it is really too late. If, on the other hand, there is a fanlike portion visible that it could be reduced to without whacking most of it away, still with mostly slender, pliable branches, then there should be some potential.
