"Ohioguy" wrote in message
...
I have a small pear tree out front, one of those grafted ones that has 5
different varieties. It just finished blooming, and now it looks like it
has 200 to 250 tiny pears on it, since the petals fell off.

The tree was planted a year ago in early spring, so it has some roots
established. However, last year was very hot and dry, so it was under
some stress, and kind of just sat there. Also, I left on the 3 tiny pears
it had on in the pot at the garden center, so we got to eat 3 pears just a
few months after planting it. It is about 5' tall, and the base is
approximately 1.25" across.

Complicating matters is that during the summer, I removed the plastic
tree wrap it had around the base, and discovered that the trunk is girdled
about 1/2 of the way around. I think this damage was caused by the tree
falling during transport, or at the nursery. I believe that the plant
vigor is limited by this, though I am hoping that over time, especially
since the tree is so small at this point, the living portion of the tree
will spread and cover up the dead part, so that the entire trunk about a
foot off the ground will be carrying nutrients up to the rest.

So, my question is this: given that it successfully had 3 pears on it
last year, and has a better root system now, but also considering the
partially girdled trunk, how many of the tiny pears should I leave on the
tree and allow to develop?

Thanks!

Wait until mid June, fruit trees have what is called the June drop. Easily
half of the fruits you see now will fall off during that period. After mid
June remove any that are deformed of damaged. Leave a fruit every 4-6 inches
if you have that many left. Spray a bit of "wound coat" on that girdled area
and you should be fine.
Steve