My sister planted three Bradford pear trees beside her car park area. The trees have gotten really huge; some of the largest Bradford pear trees I have seen. As you may know, Bradford pear trees are prone to the limbs splitting due to the way the limbs grow in a V pattern. I have seen both ice and wind storm leave almost nothing but a stump left. A few years ago an early warming caused the Bradford pears to bloom out way too early; similar to what we are seeing now. The trees were in full bloom when a heavy wet snow happened. As a result, one of the Bradford pear trees had major damage. My sister took the tree completely down and I got the wood. Bradford pear has a thin bark and when the wood dries, the bark comes loose. You can literally just pull it off and it makes a wonderful kindling. It is thin and easy to break into smaller pieces; it retains the curve of the tree as well. It burns hot so it is great kindling. I have a bucket full sitting beside the stove if I need to start a fire from a cold start. My sister is thinking of taking down the other two trees as well. The problem is that they were planted close and the tree beside the one that came down in the storm has a large area with no branches; it looks ugly as an ornamental tree. The space probably should have only had two trees planted so they had room. However, given the nature of Bradford pears, she won't plant Bradford pears back. Bradford pears are becoming an invasive species and they should have never been allowed. They are not infertile and produce tiny fruits that do have seeds that get scattered by birds and animals. In the wild Bradford pears will often produce thorns which proves a problem.
