The Pear Walk

Two very good gardening friends have on separate occasions said to me that they thought with so many ornamental pears being planted in both private and public spaces that there is a danger that these trees have become a cliché, something like a grander version of Iceberg roses.

Agapanthus praecox 'Paliidus' at the entrance	Pyrus calleryana underplanted with Salvia nemorosa

Now I’ve planted an ornamental pear walk my mind has been whittling and gnawing away at the idea. I do wonder if garden writers in 19th century Melbourne thought that planting so many elms was a bit of a cliché. Or in Berlin were lindens thought to be overdone. Planting a lot of trees of a single species, in my case Pyrus calleryana, doesn’t worry me aesthetically. The selection used here is Pyrus calleryana 'Valzam'. P. ‘Valzam’ is not only one of the narrowest growing of all the ornamental pears but it also has the largest individual flowers which are held in the largest corymbs (heads).

Large flowers of Valzam	Molly's Garden	Autumn Colour
Crocus vernus underplanting	Autumn colour	A shady summer setting

In our garden all the flowers open at once making for a terrific show. The glossy dark green leaves are handsome until May when they turn blood red, scarlet, pink and lemon. This autumn display carries on into June. This tree is superbly drought tolerant and can make an eventual height of 9 metres and width 4 metres.