Propagating pears is not difficult. There are two methods for growing pear seedlings: vegetatively and by seed. The former is the most common and involves propagation by cuttings, air layering, and seedling buds. Seed propagation is less common, as the seedling must be grafted later to ensure a bountiful harvest with good-tasting fruit.
Vegetative propagation
Asexual propagation includes pear propagation by cuttings, shoots, and air layering. Vegetative propagation is a method for producing a high-quality tree with its own roots, which will bear fruit in three years. The propagation process is simple and effective if certain rules are followed.
Propagation by cuttings
By propagating seedlings with cuttings, you can obtain own-rooted pears. Shoots taken from the seedling retain all the varietal characteristics: flavor, fruit size, disease resistance, climate resistance, and shelf life. Propagating pears with cuttings offers advantages over grafted trees: sweeter fruit, higher yields, and a longer fruiting period.
Seedlings are often propagated by grafting, using a rootstock (the parent tree) and a scion (a shoot from the desired pear tree). If the components are incompatible, the resulting hybrid will yield poorly, its fruits will be small and sour, and their resistance to frost and disease will be reduced. Therefore, it's better to grow own-rooted seedlings, which are distinguished by their longevity, good regenerative capacity, and cold tolerance.
Preparing cuttings, choosing a variety
The following factors influence the rooting of cuttings:
- age of seedling;
- quality of escape;
- cutting season;
- quality of root formation stimulator.
The survival rate is higher for young, small-fruited varieties: Pamyat Zhiglova, Osennyaya Yakovleva, Moskvichka, and Naryadnaya Efimova. Other varieties can be grown, but the rooting rate is lower than with these. Cuttings are taken after the leaves have opened and new shoots have emerged. Planting material should be taken from fruiting trees that have been producing fruit for at least three years.
The cuttings for planting should have smooth bark without signs of damage. Rooting is affected by the thickness of the cutting; the thinner it is, the less successful the rooting process. The length of the cutting is determined by the number of internodes: short cuttings should have at least three, and long cuttings at least two. The air layering should be approximately 7 cm long. The cuttings are taken in the morning, when the bark is at its most moist. Cut with a sharp garden knife at a 45°C angle from the bottom up.
The cut site is treated with fungicidal preparations to prevent infection. The cut shoots are tied into bundles and placed in cool water for 15 hours. A growth stimulant (available at specialty stores; instructions are included on the packaging) is added. After 15 hours, the cuttings can be planted outdoors or in indoor growing boxes to improve rooting.
Propagation of pear by cuttings in autumn
To prevent cuttings from freezing in winter, they are grown in transparent greenhouses, periodically opened to allow air to enter. For planting, cuttings are taken from woody pear branches after the leaves have fallen. The advantages of autumn planting are that moisture does not evaporate from the soil and the harmful effects of direct sunlight are eliminated. Before planting, the cuts are renewed—they should be at an angle on one side and straight on the other. With the sharp end at a 45°C angle, the cuttings are placed in the soil so that the buds remain above the surface, and watered.
Reproduction in summer
The optimal time for this procedure is late June to early July. Freshly cut cuttings with 2-3 internodes and 1-2 leaves are planted; it's best to cut them in the morning. As with fall planting, the cuttings are soaked in water for 15 hours with the addition of growth stimulants. They are planted in open ground, buried deep, leaving the buds above the surface. Summer care consists of regular misting in the evening or early morning and weeding. For the winter, the seedlings are protected from frost with spruce branches or sawdust.
How to grow a pear tree from a cutting at home
Fill a container about 30 cm high with two layers of soil: the first layer is black soil with added mineral fertilizers and humus, and the second layer is washed river sand, 5-8 cm thick. Before planting, water the soil so that both layers are saturated. The cutting is planted at a depth of 2-2.5 cm, after moistening the diagonal cut with Kornevin solution. To create greenhouse conditions, cover the pot tightly with plastic wrap. Open the wrap once a week for ventilation. Water as the soil dries, approximately 1-2 times a week.
By the end of the first month, the plastic wrap can be removed from the seedling, as the beginnings of roots will have already appeared. In the fall, it can be moved to open ground under plastic wrap (a greenhouse). Young seedlings are lightly watered, carefully removed from the pot, leaving a lump of soil on the roots, and planted in the prepared hole. The soil is mulched with humus or sawdust. For the winter, they are covered with spruce branches. The seedlings grow in the greenhouse for 2-3 years, then can be transplanted to a permanent location.
Propagation of pear by air layering
For layering, select young trees approximately three years old. It's best to plant the branches in a plastic box. Line the bottom with black plastic to prevent soil loss. Fill the box with fertile soil. Select a healthy, undamaged branch with smooth, even bark from the sapling. Place the box filled with soil under the branch. Bend the branch into the box and make two notches to encourage the rooting process. Treat the notches with Kornevin to accelerate growth.
The branch is placed in a box, lightly covered with soil, secured with a wire staple, and covered with more soil. If this is done in the spring, the first roots will appear in the fall, and a tree ready for transplanting will form within a year. Care involves monitoring soil moisture, mulching, protecting from the scorching sun, covering the box with a covering material in the fall, and covering it with snow in the winter. After two years, the pear sapling is separated from the main tree, removed from the container along with the root ball, and replanted in its permanent location.
Low-growing branches are easy to bend, but if they're high up, you can propagate pears by air layering using a plastic bottle. Cut off the bottom, or apical part, and make a longitudinal slit in the middle of the bottle. Make a cut in the branch through which the roots will grow. Place the bottle on the plant, fill it with soil, and wrap it tightly with cling film or tape. Care is the same as for planting in a box.
Propagation by root shoots
Root suckers, which are young shoots that grow from dormant root buds of a seedling, often appear near trees. These can only be used for propagation from own-rooted varieties. If the tree has been grafted, the suckers will have a different color, leaf shape, branch shape, and bud shape. Root suckers from the parent seedling are identical.
Young shoots are dug up for planting in mid-autumn or early spring, before the buds open. To propagate a pear tree from a sucker, it's best to select shoots that are two years old. The main root of the sucker lies horizontally, pointing toward the parent tree. Only suckers with a well-developed root system are suitable for transplanting; these shoots typically grow 2-3 meters from the main tree.
If the shoots formed near the mother tree, the roots are poorly formed and have almost no branches. In this case, the shoots are soaked in rooting stimulants and planted in a greenhouse in the spring. The following fall, they can be transplanted to their permanent location, as numerous lateral roots will grow from the taproot.
Propagation by seeds
Pears grown from seed are often used as rootstocks for grafting. Seeds for planting are taken from ripe fruits and, if necessary, left in a dark place for 7-10 days to ripen, until the flesh becomes soft but not rotten. Select the largest and smoothest seeds. Rinse under cold running water, dry on a cloth, and place in paper or cloth bags. Store in a cool place.
Clematis is considered the queen of the garden. It's hard to tear your eyes away from this living cascade of flowers. Most clematis varieties are hybrids. They are propagated vegetatively: by cuttings, layering, and division.
Seeds can be sown in open ground in late October or early November. Seedlings will emerge in the spring, thinned and watered. As they grow, remove weak seedlings, leaving the strongest ones. Trees can be transplanted to their permanent location in early fall. If grafting is planned, it can be done during the first summer in warm climates and the following year in harsh climates.
Seeds can be germinated in a refrigerator or cold room. To do this, place them in a container or bag filled with damp peat moss and sawdust. For germination, the seeds require a temperature of 3 to 5°C. After sprouting, reduce the temperature to 0°C to prevent active growth. In early spring, the prepared seedlings are planted in a greenhouse at a depth of 4 cm, with a distance of 8-10 cm between the seeds and seed beds.
Pear grafting
Grafting can be used to rejuvenate an old tree, adding a few branches using cuttings. If the tree's crown has died but the trunk is viable, a pear tree can be grown using a cleft graft or a backbark graft. With the backbark graft, the tree is cut down, leaving a stump in which small cracks are made. One end of the cutting is sharpened and inserted into the crack. The graft is treated with garden pitch and secured with electrical tape.
The second method also involves cutting down the main tree. However, to graft the scion, you need a young tree with flexible, easily peeled bark, often a wilding, rather than an old one. A small cut is made in the bark from top to bottom, bending it slightly. The scion is inserted into the prepared cut at an angle, pushed inward until it makes firm contact with the trunk's cambium. The cut is treated with garden pitch and secured with electrical tape.
Caring for seedlings
Young trees require intensive care, including watering, fertilizing, and protecting against diseases and pests. A cutting may air-layer and stop growing for 2-3 months after planting, but this does not indicate a failed propagation. If the seedling stops growing for more than 6 months, it is best to remove it and plant a new one.
To prevent the soil around the tree from losing moisture quickly, mulch it with mown grass. It's best to water it using a furrow dug around the seedling, which is then covered with grass. As a preventative measure, treat the pear tree with fungicides against fungal diseases. Mineral and organic fertilizers can be applied in late June. Sprinkle the soil around the tree with wood ash in August.
Propagating fruit trees, including pears, is not difficult. Beginner gardeners can start with propagating pears from suckers and air layering, as these methods are quick and easy to use and don't require extensive knowledge. Propagating by cuttings is a labor-intensive process, as it requires choosing the right branch for the cutting, determining the cutting area, and preparing the planting material with growth promoters.
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