04/09/2025
It's and it's also the time of year when we are seeing legions of Callery pear (Pyrus calleryana) in bloom around Lincoln and beyond. Though pretty, with their clouds of billowy white blossoms, Callery pear is invasive and wreaking havoc as it spreads into surrounding natural habitats, crowding out native species and making it difficult for them to compete.
Don't plant Callery pear! Instead, try black cherry (Prunus serotina), which is native to Nebraska and offers a similar structure and showy white blossoms that are attractive to pollinating insects (it's also the larval host for eastern tiger swallowtail and viceroy). Black cherry offers red fruits that ripen in late summer as they darken to a purple-black color. The fruits are a favorite with birds and people alike (best baked into pies are used to make jam or jelly). And another benefit is that its fragrant flowers smell much better than stinky Callery pear!
Black cherry matures at around 50 feet tall and requires 6 hours of full sun daily to thrive (it can tolerate some part-shade). It also prefers moist, fertile soil, but will also tolerate average, medium and well-drained soils.
We're not necessarily advocating that you Paul Bunyan all your Callery pear trees (though we won't cry if you do), but as they age out, definitely choose to replant a species like black cherry that's native and much more beneficial to our ecosystems.
📷 Black Cherry: Great Plains Nursery