Peach trees

[Wifezilla]

They can be expensive, but you might want to just buy trees. The older I get the less I am willing to wait for fruit production

I have 2 apple trees and one pear tree. I didn't think we would get many pears because I only bought one, but maybe a neighbor has one somewhere. It produces a lot of fruit.

Of my 2 apple trees, one produces like mad and one hardly ever has apples. They are both pretty young though so we aren't giving up on our slacker tree. If nothing else it is providing pollination.

I would love peach trees but don't have the room. I do have a maple that looks like hell, and if it gets worse, I could have it cut down and put 2 peach trees in that spot. If I do that, any replacement trees I plant will be at least 5 years old.

 

[dacjohns]

My experience with peach trees has been dismal. Everything I've read indicates a pretty intensive spraying program and I haven't done that.

 

[raro]

I second Dacjohns. I have tried peaches for years here in VA, and the insects that go after them are just horrid. I've tried half a dozen different apples, though, and they've done fine. Pears have been so-so. All of mine were semi-dwarf. And my one plum tree usually does fabulously every other year, with almost nothing in between years! And don't get me started with cherries, sigh...beautiful trees with not a single fruit!

I would WAY prefer to get a small sapling than start with a seed. You know what you're getting, and the investment is worth it. You don't have to do the Home Depot thing, even. I have had success with some of the cheap nurseries like Four Seasons that send them to you by mail. Their clearance sales are way cheap, and they usually replace ones that die. But none of mine have died.

 

[cjparker]

Home Despot

 

[FarmerDenise]

We always end up with peach pits in the compost and they end up growing. We have planted several of them and so far they all have produced nice peaches after a few (I think 4) years. My neighbor did the same with plums. He has many trees on his place that produce little plums, but he also has some very nice plum trees. I plan on growing more plums from seed this year. I saved the ones from my italian plum tree.

I have used the little plums for making juice, dehydrating them and I accidentally made wine from them too. And the chickens and goats love them too. I use a cherry stoning tool to remove the pits in those little plums.

 

[freemotion]

We always end up with peach pits in the compost and they end up growing. We have planted several of them and so far they all have produced nice peaches after a few (I think 4) years. My neighbor did the same with plums. He has many trees on his place that produce little plums, but he also has some very nice plum trees. I plan on growing more plums from seed this year. I saved the ones from my italian plum tree.

I have used the little plums for making juice, dehydrating them and I accidentally made wine from them too. And the chickens and goats love them too. I use a cherry stoning tool to remove the pits in those little plums.

OK, you've encouraged me again to plant my saved pits. Do you spray at all?

 

[i_am2bz]

Home Despot

Yeah, I sorta feel guilty calling them that, because actually their fruit trees are pretty good (better than the nearest nursery)...

My pear tree produced about a dozen or so good-sized pears the first year but never ripened...they also sell plum trees, but I'm not crazy about plums (ALTHOUGH someone just mentioned plum wine, now that would be yummy!).

Frankly, I'm just looking to raise as much fruit as possible in my zone (7b) that doesn't require constant attention. :/

 

[AL]

My peach tree has never seen a sprayer or insecticide. Of course, it is in the backyard with my chickens
I don't remember my dad spraying the big tree we had when I was younger, but I also don't remember what I had for lunch yesterday

 

[dacjohns]

Home Despot

Yeah, I sorta feel guilty calling them that, because actually their fruit trees are pretty good (better than the nearest nursery)...

My pear tree produced about a dozen or so good-sized pears the first year but never ripened...they also sell plum trees, but I'm not crazy about plums (ALTHOUGH someone just mentioned plum wine, now that would be yummy!).

Frankly, I'm just looking to raise as much fruit as possible in my zone (7b) that doesn't require constant attention. :/

Pears can be tricky too. We have a pear that produces a lot of pears. They don't ripen on the tree, the seem to ripen from the inside out. Bruises will over ripen real fast.

http://extension.oregonstate.edu/news/story.php?S_No=1003&storyType=garden

 

[i_am2bz]

They don't ripen on the tree, the seem to ripen from the inside out. Bruises will over ripen real fast.

http://extension.oregonstate.edu/news/story.php?S_No=1003&storyType=garden

Thanks dacjohns. I heard about the paperbag trick too (after all our pears dropped & rotted, naturally). :/