I would not prune pears when in bloom due to chance of fireblight! Fireblight is a bacterial disease. The bacteria (if present) will enter thru blossoms or injured tender new shoots. I would only prune pears when fully dormant.

If a risk of fireblight exists, the preferred time to prune is during hot, dry weather.

Thanks for the comments.

Any other thoughts?

Can pruning too much hurt them? Also, is it too late to shorten the pear trees?

Thanks for the input!

Good advise..see if these pears are any good to eat..could be ornamental then I would let it be.. these flowers are great for insects/bees etc. and the thicket is a treasure for birds.

Looks ornamental. But really, pruning would be more or less the same for size control.

Yes but...Ornamental trees are hardly ever pruned .....if you have room like I see here, then leave it alone...anytime when cutting you can attract a problem..especially fire blight.

Is that a Bradford pear? Ornamental, white flowers, smells like a locker room? If so, then I'd consider getting rid of it completely.

When we bought the place, I thought the owner indicated that 3 apple trees and 2 pear trees were fruiting trees. There is also a cherry, but I think that is ornamental. Now I wish I'd been able to ask more specifics.

If the pears did end up being ornamental, I'd be tempted to do away with both, yes.

We should know soon, though. Pears are almost done blossoming now, and apples are in full bloom.

I generally don't have anything against ornamental trees, but Bradford pears stink and they break easily. They're supposedly not very good for other species of pears either.

Yeah, years ago I lived in Charlotte, NC, which seems like the Bradford pear capital of the world. They are everywhere. They can look nice at times but I have no great love for them.

The cherry tree at our place is closer to the front of the house where ornamentals should be. The pears are in the back, so yeah, that's why if they are ornamental, I would want to take them down and put in real trees. :)

Makes sense. A tornado took out all my trees last month. I'm actually planning on adding mostly fruiting trees when I finally get to replant (waiting on construction to start now). I'm thinking dwarf or semi-dwarf for everything except the cherry trees which will line the street on the front yard of my corner lot.