If one substantial branch is completely off of the tree, that branch is done.

what does the rest of the tree look like. I'm having difficulty visualizing your tree from the description. What was the relative positioning of the branches before they split.

Dit one branch break of and leave a long, jagged torn bark scar lengthwise down the tree?

What percentage of the tree is no longer attached?

When you ask for hope, what are you hoping for? That the tree can survive and grow healthy? That the branch that is now off of the tree can be reattached?

If its a modest wound in the side of the tree and you are just hoping for survival and growth, you probably have good odds. Perhaps just cleaning up any jagged edges on the torn bark and wood with a sharp knife and some time will do the trick.

I saw a This Old House where an arborist was strengthening a tree by putting long bolts through drilled holes with wide washers at each end, three or four of them, from a weak crotch down every six inches, staggered around the trunk. You might cut off the fallen side just above the split, and then bolt the sides of the trunk back together. This is assuming it is a fairly wide trunk, of course.

Just a thought...

Carla in Sac

Caper,
Many pear trees grow with a lot of vertical growth leading to included bark and weak crotches. Snow, ice, heavy crop or spreading will cause them to crack. As Carla mentioned bolting is an old remedy for repair. This is mostly done now on a hobby or home owner type basis. Drill and place the bolts through the strongest part. You will need to cut away the bark and/or countersink the area where the washers and nuts will be. The reason for that is so the tree will heal or grow over the nut and washer easily. In pruning the tree in the future try to leave one strong central leader and cut to make limbs out of the others. Use spreaders or weight down limbs early to limit their vertical growth and produce "fruiting wood". You can cover the repair with tree sealer if it makes you feel better but the tree is capable of growing over the wound on it's own.
Bberry

carla in sac and bberry,

please dont recommend anyone putting anything metal in a tree ! someday this tree will die or a new owner will wish to cut it down. at this point someone will use a chainsaw and find the metal , the broken chain will strike them in the face or well.... you get the picture.

the uhh... breeds or uneducated that owned my property before me nailed their fences and such to trees. now i have trees with fencing growing out of trees and stumps where THEY CUT THAT ARE OVER 6 FOOT IN HEIGHT.

what an unnecessary safety hazard !

a tree that heals around a bolt !!! would u like your grandchild cutting down that tree ?

this old house has integrity problems in my book !

wildlifeman

Wildlifeman,
Sorry if you were offended by the information about repairing fruit tree problems. It is however an old and accepted practice. Fruit trees are not usually used as logs in mills. I cut and use more than 20 cord of firewood from my old farm a year and many are logs that I cut up on my bandsaw mill. Like you I do not like to find metal in the tree and I have hit metal like old spikes and fencing too many times to tell. I have never broken a chain or a band saw blade. They are dulled and ruined which is a pain since they just stop cutting. That is not to say that freak accidents do not happen. If we could eliminate all of the future hazards from using modern technology it would be nice but that is not possible. By the way I am a retired wood shop teacher and safety was always one of my major concerns. Chainsaws all by themselves are a very dangerous tool unless used properly. Risk is a part of life and that is not to say that I do not worry about my own children.
I find Norm Abrams and others on This Old House and the New Yankee Workshop to be very safety oriented and informative.
By the way my Grandfather and my Uncles worked in the woods most of their lifes and yes they had accidents but never from a broken chain hitting them. I am far more worried about driving to town than hitting metal in a tree!
Bberry