Callery pear, Pyrus calleryana, is an invasive plant that has become a major issue in the state of Kentucky. Bradford pears (a cultivar of callery pear) have been widely planted but, unfortunately, not only are these trees a poor choice for landscapes due to failure issues, they also produce seeds that invade natural areas, damaging the productivity and integrity of farms and forests. To raise awareness about callery pear (and other invasive plants), we developed the Kentucky Bradford Pear Bounty Program which gives landowners free native trees and shrubs in exchange for landscape callery pear that has been cut down.  This was based on a successful model program in South Carolina. People sign up for an event where trees will be provided. They just have to provide a photo of themselves and their cut-down tree.  This program gives homeowners the chance to remove their Bradford pear trees and replace them with more attractive, long lasting, and valuable native trees. 

The Kentucky Bradford Pear Bounty program was first piloted in Franklin County in the spring of 2022, with a broad range of partners adding to it, from a local non-profit (the Remove Invasives Partnership of Franklin County) providing volunteers and funds for trees, The Franklin County Extension Office (agent: Adam Leonberger) hosting, and KY Forest Health Extension (Ellen Crocker) leading advertising, organizing registration, and providing funds for trees.

During this reporting period we offered this program three times at two different locations: in the fall of 2022, Franklin County (Oct 15) and Fayette County (Oct 22), and one in 2023, Franklin County (March 25). Overall, over 100 people signed up for these events through our online registration portal and hundreds of native tree (including oaks, dogwoods, Kentucky coffeetrees, persimmons, yellowwoods, pawpaws, and many other species) have been distributed. 

At the Spring 2023 Bradford Pear Bounty event in Franklin County:

• 20 families participated from 13 KY counties
• 120+ callery pear trees were removed by landowners
• 67 native tree replacements were provided
• The average estimated diameter of callery pears removed was 16.5 inches with largest estimated removed tree diameter of 28 inches

Even broader reaching that this direct engagement, these event were profiled in a range of local television shows and newspapers, increasing awareness about callery pear and other invasive species, for example: https://www.wkyt.com/2023/03/25/uk-helps-kentuckians-replace-their-bradford-pear-trees/