I planted one Warren Pear and one Moonglow Pear last year. I selected both mainly for their fire blight resistance since I'm in an area where that's a big concern. My Moonglow rather rapidly succumbed to fire blight anyway. I thought maybe it was just bad luck. So, since I've read many times that a Warren pear needs a pollinator, I tried to plant another Moonglow this year, but again the Moonglow got fire blight and within a couple of weeks it became evident I'd have to dig up this Moonglow as well, so I did. I'm not willing to baby a tree along with large doses of fungicide, so I suppose I'm stuck with only one pear tree....the Warren pear. My question is, will it produce at least some fruit when it matures even without a pollinator? Thank you, Dee
Hello Dee, There are two types of pollination. Self-pollination occurs when the pollen is transferred from the anther to the stigma on the same flower, from another flower on the same plant, or from a flower on another plant of the same variety. Self-pollinated plants are said to be self-fruitful. I have found three sources that state that Warren is a self-fruitful pear, in which case insects will do the job for you. Raakel
That's great news because it would seem that Warren is the only variety that's fire blight resistant enough to survive in my particular area! Thank you for the information.
There are also 2 other pear trees I know of besides Warren that are also highly resistant to fire blight. Ayres and Magness.
'Orient,' 'Keiffer,' and 'LeConte' may be considered. This page shows research from Mississippi State U. including these cultivars and 'Moonglow'. Their 'Moonglow' succumbed to fireblight also, while the others had lower susceptibility. It is speculated that 'Magness' may be identical to 'Warren', so until that is proven or disproven, it may be suggested to not use one to pollenize the other.
Highly resistant fire blight pear trees are: -honeysweet -kieffer -laconte -Magness -old home "old home" rootstocks seem to be very resistant to fire blight also. Don't know if I can get a hold of any of these varieties of pear or if they are suitable for growth in southern ontario...does anyone know where to buy the above mentioned pears
