Silver Creek Nursery Ltd.

Old Home Pear Scionwood

Scionwood is not a tree, yet!

Scionwood, or scions (pronounced 'sigh-ons'), are the young, one-year shoots you graft with in order to propagate a variety. If you want to propagate a Gala apple tree, for example, you would graft with Gala scionwood!

We collect these scions from trees in our test orchards and are happy to be able to offer rare/heritage varieties!

For more information on scionwood and grafting, click HERE!

History: The 'Old Home' pear (Pyrus communis) is an Illinois-native cultivar discovered in the early 20th century, renowned for its exceptional fire blight resistance and widely used in developing the common OHxF (Old Home x Farmingdale) rootstock series. Identified by F.E. Reimer around 1915, it became a staple in North American pear production for grafting. 

Why We Grow It: Old Home is a great option for interstem grafting between dwarf rootstocks such as Provence Quince, which are incompatible with some pears, such as Bartlett. 

        $8.50

        Propagation Material:

        Out of stock

        Fruit Traits:

        Recommended Use: Canning, fresh eating

        Fruit Size: Medium

        Storage: Keeps until mid-September when stored in cool, humid conditions and until October when stored in cold storage

        Harvest: September - Early

        Plant Traits:

        Canadian Hardiness Zone: 5

        Flowering Time: Middle

        Pollination Requirements: Partially self-pollinating, this variety will produce some fruit without a pear of a different variety but will produce more and better fruit if one is present. This variety is incompatible with Seckel.

        Sun/Shade Requirements: Full sun (approx. 8-10 hours of sun daily)

        General Growth Habit: Moderately vigorous and very hardy, spreading growth habit, has good crops. Susceptible to scab, mildew, fireblight, pear blister mite, and coddling moth but tolerant of stony pit.

        Shipping: Scionwood can be shipped anytime in the spring, although we generally recommend that customers receive their scionwood by mid-April at the latest to ensure it arrives dormant. We can hold it longer if customers accept the risk that the scionwood may start breaking dormancy after this time.

        Pickup: We will notify you as soon as your scionwood is ready. We recommend picking it up as soon as you are able and storing it at home.

        Click HERE for tips on storing scionwood!

        CLICK HERE to see our shipping policy.

        Each scion will have at least 2-4 grafts' worth of material and ideally will be approximately 12-18" or 30cm+ long. Since we specialize in so many varieties/species, there will be natural differences in growth habit and vigour so some varieties may be shorter or thinner. We will provide the best quality we can, within natural restraints.

        If a scion is less than 6" or 15cm, it will be discounted accordingly.

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