Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Core Eudicots: Rosids: Fabids: Rosales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Pyrus calleryana
FAMILY
Rosaceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Check out EDDMapS.org to see where this has been reported.
Read more about Bradford Pear at Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Pyrus calleryana
FAMILY
Rosaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Pyrus calleryana
SYNONYMOUS WITH Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 9 (2014)
Pyrus calleryana
COMMON NAME:
Bradford Pear, Callery Pear
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
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JK Marlow jkm0502b_11
February Greenville County SC
Parking lot
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Keith Bradley kab_pyrus_calleryana_0486
February Lexington County SC
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Keith Bradley kab_pyrus_calleryana_0494
February Lexington County SC
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JK Marlow jkm0403m_03
March Greenville County SC
Downtown Greenville
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JK Marlow jkm080324_010
March Greenville County SC
One of the South's most overplanted trees, per The Southern Living Garden Book.
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JK Marlow jkm080324_016
March Greenville County SC
To see seedlings apparently parented by these trees, scroll down to December.
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JK Marlow jkm080324_020
March Greenville County SC
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JK Marlow jkm080324_021
March Greenville County SC
Unfortunately the buying public has not caught up to this tree's problems, per Manual of Woody Landscape Plants (Dirr, 1975+).
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JK Marlow jkm210309_8913
March Greenville County SC
Blackwell Heritage Preserve
Bud break....
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JK Marlow jkm240312_7677
March Greenville County SC
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Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_pyrus_calleryana
March
Large clusters of brilliantly white flowers with maroon-tipped anthers, per A Field Guide for the Identification of Invasive Plants in Southern Forests (Miller, Chambliss, & Lowenstein, 2010).
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Paul Thompson pstpyrus_calleryana
September?
Leaves ovate to orbicular with acuminate tips. — Clemson Extension
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JK Marlow jkm0411i_11
November Greenville County SC
Parking lot
Leaves often tufted on short branchlets, per A Field Guide for the Identification of Invasive Plants in Southern Forests (Miller, Chambliss, & Lowenstein, 2010).
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JK Marlow jkm181111_5867
November Williamsburg County SC
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JK Marlow jkm181111_5868
November Williamsburg County SC
Fruit globose, about 1cm in diameter, brown with pale dots, per Woody Plants of the Southeastern US: A Winter Guide (Lance, 2004).
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JK Marlow s041130_a
November Greenville County SC
Parking lot
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JK Marlow s041130_b
November Greenville County SC
Parking lot
Initially circular, maturing to ovate or slightly cordate with tapering tip, per A Field Guide for the Identification of Invasive Plants in Southern Forests (Miller, Chambliss, & Lowenstein, 2010).
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JK Marlow jkm0412a_33
December Greenville County SC
Bunched Arrowhead Heritage Preserve
Twigs often with spiny spur shoots, per Woody Plants of the Blue Ridge (Lance).
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JK Marlow jkm071203_006
December Greenville County SC
Field
Homes across the road are landscaped with this invasive (see March pics).
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Pyrus calleryana
FAMILY
Rosaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Pyrus calleryana
FAMILY
Rosaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Pyrus calleryana
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 9
Pyrus calleryana
1178
Tree
Perennial
Habitat: Commonly planted and persistent, now an aggressive naturalizer in fields, roadsides, and disturbed areas across most of our region, per Weakley's Flora
Non-native: China
Common in Piedmont & NC Coastal Plain (uncommon elsewhere in GA-NC-SC)
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
This plant is causing problems in natural areas outside its native range, according to authorities such as:
- Alabama Invasive Plant Council, 2012
- Brooklyn Botanic Garden
- Georgia Exotic Pest Plant Council, 2006
- Kentucky Exotic Pest Plant Council, 2013
- SC Exotic Pest Plant Council, 2014
- SC Native Plant Society
- Tennessee Exotic Pest Plant Council, 2009
- US Forest Service Southern Research Station
- Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation, 2014
IS THE PLANT "ARMED"?
Armed with spinose spur shoots
LEAVES:
Deciduous
Simple
Alternate
Petioles 2-4.5cm long
FLOWER:
Spring
White
Radially symmetrical
5 sepals
5 petals
20 stamens
FRUIT:
Summer/Fall
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Guide to the Wildflowers of SC, 2nd ed. (McMillan, Porcher, Rayner, & White; 2022) p516
- Invasive Plants, Guide to Identification, Impacts and Control (Kaufman & Kaufman, 2007) p114
- A Field Guide for the Identification of Invasive Plants in Southern Forests (Miller, Chambliss, & Lowenstein, 2010) p004
- Woody Plants of the Blue Ridge (Lance) p40
- Woody Plants of the Southeastern US: A Winter Guide (Lance, 2004) p260
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