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[Mauch1@aol.com]

Erwin,
     I'm not familiar with the term "oculation", is this what we would
call "budding" or "bud grafting"?  Do you use "chip" or "t-budding"?

>pyrifolia - like Nijiseiki, Hosui, Seigyoku, etc.) and of the chinese white
>pear types (Pyrus bretschneideri, or do we nowadays have to say Pyrus
>pyrifolia var sinensis? - like Tse Li and Ya Li). They are planted as
     Americans seem to avoid species names like the plague, but I've also
seen Chinese pears refered to as Pyrus ussuriensis.

Chris Mauchline
SE PA, zone 6

>I'm living in Belgium, in a climate which is more or less comparable with
>that of New York.
>I've grafted (actually I used oculation during the summer) my Asian pear
>collection on quince (A, C and Adams, the latter is a local Belgian quince
>rootstock with vigor between A and C) with an interstem of European pear
>(Beurré Hardy or Curé). The Asian pears are of the Japanese type (Pyrus
>pyrifolia - like Nijiseiki, Hosui, Seigyoku, etc.) and of the chinese white
>pear types (Pyrus bretschneideri, or do we nowadays have to say Pyrus
>pyrifolia var sinensis? - like Tse Li and Ya Li). They are planted as
>cordons and are doing mostly (the wood of Tse Li is more diseaseprone) fine.
>The vigor is quite low, but that could be due to the enormous productivity
>of these species or because I've planted them at an interspacing of 30cm (or
>1 ft - which is very narrow, but I did have too much cultivars and very
>little place to plant them). They are healthy trees for approximately 5
>years.
>Although it can freeze here quite severe, there is no problem with the pears
>(the quince rootstock would be more of problem if the temperature would drop
>very low).
>So, if your European pear can survive your winters, then I think it will be
>successfull.