Treelover03. It should work assuming you are familiar with grafting. It is not practical to attempt to add half a tree with a graft. Most people add a few buds and them let it grow into a small tree. I'm currently grafting dwarf a inter-stems to callery roots and them add a fruiting variety on top. This allows for a stronger root system combined with the inter-stem to keep the tree smaller. Good luck, Bill

Quince (cydonia oblonga) is used to graft european pear on, it might be useful for bradford pear as well

Thanks everyone for all your suggestions. My winter-protection of the seedling trees isn't always perfect, and there is quite often freeze damage on the ends of the branches that are close to the tarps and frost blankets encircling the cages. This system works well for my grafted mangos, because branch length is relatively short, and they can bloom because the branch tips aren't so close to the cage. But on seedling mangos, as you probably know, branches need to be...I don't know...at least six feet in length or more before they bloom. That just isn't possible for me to protect them at this size. Hence, my question about the self-grafting. If you take a branch tip, and move it to the trunk -- I thought that was part of the principle involved in getting a dwarfed tree, and also to get it to fruit sooner? With so much pruning and die-back, my three trees are essentially topped. Main trunks are perhaps three feet tall, and the branches radiate outwards. I know picturing this is difficult for those who have never had to winter-protect and heat a tropical tree! -Bruce

Here is an update on my tree.. you can see its finally starting to grow leaves. Also with the help of my new friend "Soil Sleuth" I am better able to measure how damp the soil is. Thanks @ Suzi.. Question: Evening temperatures have started to drop to around 50 degrees. Is it time to take the tree indoors? How cold is too cold for outdoor survival?