hi,
Does anyone know what the oval shaped white blooming trees that have
recently bloomed in Austin. I see them everywhere and was thinking
they would make a good shade tree close to my house. Thanks

zip

"zip" wrote in message
ps.com...
hi,
Does anyone know what the oval shaped white blooming trees that have
recently bloomed in Austin. I see them everywhere and was thinking
they would make a good shade tree close to my house. Thanks


They might be Bradford Pear.

On 10 Mar 2007 12:55:10 -0800, "zip"
wrote:

hi,
Does anyone know what the oval shaped white blooming trees that have
recently bloomed in Austin. I see them everywhere and was thinking
they would make a good shade tree close to my house. Thanks

zip

Bradford Pears, but they are not the greatest trees. First, they
attract boat tail grackles. Second, their crotch system is very weak
and as the tree ages it becomes more susceptible to losing limbs in
any number of our straight line wind storms of summer.

I highly recommend if you want the beautiful white blooms, and if you
want a nice fragrance you can use Mexican plum, which is another tree
blooming right now all over the place.

I have never seen such beautiful blooms on the redbuds before! No
rain to speak of, but they are glorious.

"Jangchub" wrote in message
news are not the greatest trees. First, they
attract boat tail grackles. Second, their crotch system is very weak
and as the tree ages it becomes more susceptible to losing limbs in
any number of our straight line wind storms of summer.

Not all the Pear trees around here are Bradford pears.

On Sun, 11 Mar 2007 21:20:32 GMT, "Justin Wilson" wrote:


"Jangchub" wrote in message
news are not the greatest trees. First, they
attract boat tail grackles. Second, their crotch system is very weak
and as the tree ages it becomes more susceptible to losing limbs in
any number of our straight line wind storms of summer.

Not all the Pear trees around here are Bradford pears.



I didn't say they were. The trees blooming NOW are most likely
Bradford. They do not produce edible fruit and are not the sort of
trees to plant if you want long term trees. It's a waste if in
fifteen years the tree cracks down the middle because that is the
downfall of Bradford pears.

On Mon, 12 Mar 2007 01:47:29 GMT, Steve Wertz
wrote:

My neighborhood is about 18-20 years old. I haven't noticed
anyone remove a Bradford yet. Some of them are almost 50ft tall.
They all bloomed exactly 4 days ago, with today being the most
impressive. The rain will probably change that.

-sw

Two websites do not recommend this tree because they are not long
lived. They are very fast growers, but in Texas, my experience is
that, these trees are overused and being non-native are not the best
idea. There are many other trees which are beautiful which bloom and
have a very long lifespan.

If I were to plant a Bradford, and in 20 years went to sell my house
and my Bradford was cut in half from a straight line wind...well, not
great curb appeal. I think in terms of tens of years, not today where
plantings are concerned. That's just me.

http://www.aces.edu/dept/extcomm/new.../may10b01.html

http://hgic.clemson.edu/factsheets/HGIC1006.htm