CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA (CVILLE RIGHT NOW) – Overly proliferous and proven too brittle to withstand storms, the Virginia Department of Forestry is instituting a Callery pear tree exchange next month at its Charlottesville headquarters. Introduced as an ornamental landscape tree, the Callery pear and its cultivars — of which the Bradford is a sterile but similarly brittle one — took off in popularity due to their showy white spring flowers. But they are not native to the U.S., and are now considered one of the worst native plant species in the entire Southeast because they outcompete native trees. And the fact they’re prone to snapping in storms is a danger to homes, cars, and property.

You can pre-register with the DOF to exchange up to 3 properly-removed Callery pear trees, and take them to their headquarters April 20 for a native replacement tree for each. For safety reasons, DOF recommends hiring an ISA-certified arborist to remove the tree from your property and treat the stump with herbicide to prevent regrowth,

Click here for all the information and to pre-register.