I have a tree that started out as a Seckel pear. I grafted on Comice, Bosc, Housi, and Korean Giant. They all did fine for about 6-7 years with Bosc and Comice growing more. So the three Europeans seem compatible. But the last 3-4 years the Asian's, Housi and Korean Giant have been in decline. Each year they die back a little more. The Housi I don't care about losing. I've grafted KG on another that was 20th Century and it's growing like a weed.

So there maybe some delayed compatibility issues.

You don't need a pollinator for an Asian unless you love spending hrs thinning. Well actually even without a pollinator you will still spend hrs thinning.

Really? I've read that Shinseiki and Nijiseiki are partially self-fertile, so the two with "Century" in their English names, but only those two. And some places only say Shinseiki.

Is there any reason that they couldn't be grafted onto the same compatible rootstock? I think it was OHxF33 or 97.

If grafted directly onto the rootstock then you should be able to put both on one tree. Mine were all grafted onto Seckel.

Maybe there are places that Asians don't set well period or don't set well without cross pollination. But it's not something I'd worry about.

For commercial production I expect its pollination. There is a much bigger chance a variety will lose its pollinator and make it useless.

I have a bunch of those I grafted myself. I have not had any problems with compatibility but some combos are supposed to be problematic. In particular Euro on Asian is more problematic than the other way. Most of mine are with both on rootstock but I also have some Asian on Euro that are doing well. One combo failed, Olympic on some Euro I don't remember now. I then put Olympic on a different Euro and its doing fine.

Scott

I have a shinko and a hosui tree that are in their third year. I traded for some bartlett cuttings and am going to graft them onto both trees to have multiple varities on one tree. I am in zone 7, N. VA. I have decided to do the grafting in late April. The last freeze is expected tonight and the trees are leafing out and preparing to bloom. The cuttings are larger caliper than I would like, about 3/4 inch. What type of graft should I use since the cuttings will be larger than the recieving branch?

Would a Kieffer pear be a good choice to graft onto since it's already a cross between Asian & Euro?
Since I have no clue what I'm doing when it comes to grafting, it would be nice to start with something that would still be useful even if all the grafts fail!

Would a Kieffer pear be a good choice to graft onto since it's already a cross between Asian & Euro?
Since I have no clue what I'm doing when it comes to grafting, it would be nice to start with something that would still be useful even if all the grafts fail!

I have a youngish Keiffer that's become, over the years, 'foster home' to a dozen or more different pear varieties. Some Euro, some Asian, most EuroXsand pear hybrids (like Keiffer, Orient, etc.)

Pears are easy to graft. We sometime kid that you can just throw the scions at the tree, or just get them together in the same room - and you'll have success. That's a bit of an exaggeration, but not much of one.

Charlie that is Euro on asian so stands a greater chance of failure. I never tried one myself so can't add any personal experiences. For a large scion on smaller stock I use a simple wedge and align one side. Wrap very tightly.

Christy, Re: Kieffer I have heard it works reasonably well as a rootstock but if you are buying something you may as well get an Old Home rootstock or some other more standard one.

Scott

What does it mean for a graft to fail? Obviously, it could just not do anything, but several posts have talked about it seeming fine for years, then suddenly failing. Does the actual graft junction fail, or is the grafted portion of the tree just weaker and more prone to whatever diseases are floating around? Are there warning signs before that happens?

I've found a number of sources for rootstock, but scion wood seems to be expected to come from friends or trades. Are there reputable place you can just buy it?

The union literally fails: no more nutrients flow. It doesn't happen instantly, the tree at first is sickly then the top dies.

You can buy pear scions from Fedco and perhaps Maple Valley.

Scott

I have grafted many Asain various on the invasive Bradford pear trees. Grafted 1 year old scion wood on 1 year old limbs. Pretty easy.