A tree said to be the “grandson” of one that was first planted nearly 150 years before the American Revolution will be dedicated at 1 p.m. on Wednesday, May 22, in the Master Gardeners of Greene County Demonstration Garden located in the Springfield Botanical Gardens at Nathanael Greene-Close Memorial Park, 2400 S. Scenic Ave.
Tom Meshek, president of the Endicott Family Association, will give a history of the tree at the dedication, and a reception will follow the brief ceremony.
“This tree has quite a story,” said Master Gardener Gail Wright, “as the original tree dates from 1632.” The Endicott Pear Tree, the oldest cultivated fruit tree in North America, is a semi-dwarf variety that can get as tall as 15 to 20 feet and as high at maturity. It was gifted to Master Gardeners by Springfield resident Gordon Harmon, a descendant of Massachusetts Governor John Endicott, whose ancestors planted the first tree.
Since 1997, cuttings of the Endicott Pear Tree in Danvers, Massachusetts, have been collected by a gene bank that preserves invaluable plant genetic resources of fruit and nut trees. A clone was grown at an Oregon facility and made available to the Endicott Family Association whose mission is to make sure that the tree continues to survive.
University of Missouri Extension Horticultural Specialist Patrick Byers will plant the Endicott Pear Tree in the southwest corner of the herb garden.
For more information, contact Gail Wright at 417.988-0756 or gailwright44@yahoo.com.
Master Gardeners of Greene County, in coordination with University of Missouri Extension located in the Springfield-Greene County Botanical Center in Nathanael Greene/Close Memorial Park, provides horticultural information and training to the gardening public based on proven research specific to the local climate, soils and plants. For information, call 417.414.0363 or e-mail at mg.greenecounty@gmail.com.
News Release Master Gardeners of Greene County, prepared by Jeanne Duffey.
