Pear trimming after horse snacked on it....

[bobm]

Secuano... you stated that your sheep do not climb. Well, that may be so here and NOW as there is no overhead tempting fruit . I have seen MANY sheep stand on their hind legs and harvest fruit as well as trim off tastey leaves and new branches as far as they can streatch upwards.

 

[secuono]

True, but with 4.5 acres for five 2ft tall mini sheep that hate summer heat as much as I do, I really don't see them trying it for too long. Maybe one day when the tree provides some real shade, but for now, they do what my mare does. Hide in the barn and only leave to graze some, then go right back in. Oh, and they aren't thin sheep like most people have, mine aren't quite fat, but certainly not thin.

I have to weed a thousand feet of fencing for the hot wire, weeding under a tree while I go by it won't be that difficult if I end up having to fence it off completely.

 

[secuono]

It's a very healthy looking little tree!

You are right to want the branches to be more horizontal. Pears in particular tend to grow with very narrow branch angles which make them weak and prone to splitting, especially with a snow load, or when heavy with fruit.

I knew pears grew straight up and narrow. They almost look like Christmas trees!

This is a good time for you to start widening those branch angles while your tree is still young. You can make spreaders to help with that, which are basically wooden sticks with a notch in either end to fit against the trunk and branch.

I didn't know that I could spread the branches and train it to do something other that look like a rocket aimed at the moon. Thanks so much for this info. I just happen to have a young pear tree in the front yard!

Trees grow from the crown so if a branch is now, say, 3 feet off the ground, it will always be 3 feet off the ground.

It's a pretty tree, good luck with it.

goes out in garage looking for suitable wooden sticks.........

Haha, my dad had several planted in a row when we were little kids. He knew nothing about them or that you had to trim and train them. Every year, they would get taller and taller, thin, pointy spears. I think one of them ended up at least 20ft before my mom, I think she's a tree hater, cut the last of them down. They rarely got more than a few fruits on them, too.

 

[secuono]

Ok, here is the tree. None of the branches were really that near going around the tree, it's more of a mixed height spiral staircase, if you will. Hoping that's ok.
The first layer or ring of branches is the long stuff going up, the 2nd is the very short branches where the mare cut them all down. There's two growing for leader and I'm going to wait before I decide which is better. Also, left the original leader, it has a small big of baby leaves growing, using it as a brace for two other branches. Don't want that tip to die before the other branches take shape, then I'll trim it down, along with one of the two leaders that won't work out. I might take out other branches down lower, but again, just going to wait and see for now.

 

[catjac1975]

Here are some good images.
http://www.google.com/search?q=how+...es%2Ftree_fruits_nuts%2Fhgic1351.html;300;300

 

[Nyboy]

I love mini animals can you post photos of your sheep?Are they babydolls?

 

[secuono]

They sure are Babydolls!!

Ram loves horse hocks and tails. 13h wild Corola Mustang pony.

Only lamb this year.

Last year's lambs.

 

[Nyboy]

very cute love the lamb climing the dog, what a good dog!!

 

[secuono]

He grew up fast, being a single, he's just 2-3in short of his adult height!

Adding, they were bred down from the Southdowns to graze under the grapevines.

 

[897tgigvib]

For a personal Pear tree that is not in an orchard it may well be good to prune it as you want, more horizontally. The tips in a few years of each branch will point upward. All the many Pear orchards 30 miles south and 20 miles west of here have upward growing branches. They grow upward after only one to three feet of 45 degree up and outward growth. That probably facilitates closer spacing for more production per acre. You should see these pear orchards. the tops of the trees are all level and flat as if sheared, but they are not sheared, they're carefully pruned that way.