Nothing tastes better than a fresh peach in the summer. Why spend a ton of money, and worry about what pesticides are being used from other sources, instead consider planting a peach tree of your own!
Peach trees come in all sizes, even dwarf cultivars that you can grow in a container, so there's nothing stopping you from nurturing a peach crop that you can add to cobblers, canned preserves, smoothies, or salsa.
Peach trees need full sun. Peach trees growing in shade lose their vigor,making them susceptible to pest and disease problems. Ensure that peach trees have the proper spacing to prevent them from shading each other at maturity. Plant standard peaches 18 feet apart, and dwarf peaches five feet apart.
When pruning a peach tree, the finished look of the branches should have a herringbone pattern with an open center, like a vase. Perform pruning in July, removing upright shoots that shade fruiting branches in the tree's interior. The abundance of light that you allow to reach these fruiting branches following pruning is important to the development of next season's flower buds.
If you're interested in planting a peach tree, or need help with pruining, don't be shy we would love a call from you. We're here to help!