Peaches are the favorite fruit crop grown in Texas. After all, the expression “sweet as a peach” indicates the reason so many people want peach trees growing in their gardens.  More than a million trees are planted statewide every year, and peaches will grow and produce fruit in almost every part of the state.

        In home gardens, it is easy to plant one tree or build an orchard, depending on the space available.    In selecting a spot for your peach tree, make sure the soil drains well.  Peaches are very susceptible to waterlogged soil.  The better the soil, the more productive your peaches will be, so build up the soil with the addition of compost and other organic matter if you have time before you plant the tree(s).

        Select a variety that is well-adapted to your area.  Peaches have a chilling requirement of a certain number of hours of winter temperatures between 32° and 45°F to break dormancy and induce normal bloom and growth.  If varieties are chosen than have a chilling requirement that is too low, the chances are that the tree will bloom too early and fruit will be lost to frost.  If varieties are chosen that have a chilling requirement that is too high, the trees may be very slow to break dormancy and fruit will fail.  Check the map for the varieties recommended for your area and check with neighbors who have tasty peaches growing in their yards.  This is a great time to taste-sample varieties and choose the one you like best.

 Planting

        Peach trees need full sun. They won’t grow and produce well as understory trees.  Depending on the variety you select, make sure there is adequate room for a full-grown tree to flourish before you plant.

        Choose your favorite variety now, but don’t plant until fall.  Planting in the fall gives the trees time to establish roots during the winter and early spring.  Plant your tree, mulch it well, and keep well watered for the first two years at least.  You can’t depend on rain to provide an young tree with enough water.

        During the first year, you should also make sure that the mulch layer is thick enough and broad enough to keep weeds from sapping the tree’s strength.  Most grasses and weeds are more aggressive than your little peach tree and will suck up all the water and nutrients, leaving your tree weakened.

 Pruning

        The main goals of pruning are to maintain an open center in the tree to be sure that air circulates well and to control crop size by selectively thinning fruiting wood.  Peach trees bear fruit only on one-year-old wood. You can also limit the size of the tree so that harvesting is easier.  Finally, pruning is necessary to remove diseased or damaged wood.

        Steps for pruning a mature tree:
1.  Remove all shoots, suckers and sprouts in the lower three feet of the tree.
2.  Remove all shoots above seven to fifteen feet in height other than red 18-24” fruiting shoots.
3.  Remove all vigorous shoots which grow toward the inside of the tree.
4.  Remove all old gray wood in the three to 7-15 foot production zone.
        These guidelines are recommended for commercial fruit growers. In the home garden, you can be less severe in your pruning and allow your trees to grow into larger ornamental elements of the garden.

        In very productive years, you can insure that your peaches will be big and luscious by removing small fruit to space the peaches about 6 inches apart.  The earlier fruit is thinned, the greater the response of the remaining fruit.

 Fertility

        To keep your trees healthy and productive, put your peach trees on a standard organic diet.  Frequent spraying of the young trees with seaweed or a mix of seaweed and fish emulsion will insure that the tree has sufficient micronutrients for healthy growth.  Addition of compost, manure, and mulch will keep the organic content of the soil high.

        Application of a good organic fertilizer in the early spring will keep an established tree healthy and growing well.

 Pests

        Many people avoid planting fruit trees in their home gardens because they require too much care.  We hear stories about having to “spray” fruit trees dozens of time throughout the season.  If you grow with chemicals, that may be true, but a good healthy organic peach tree is no more trouble than any other ornamental tree in the landscape and much more rewarding!

        There are insects, diseases and pests that can harm your fruit, but a good organic program will go a long way in preventing any of those problems. Healthy soil, a diverse environment in which to grow and attention to stress factors will make growing peaches a pleasure.

        A balance of beneficial insects will generally control any pests that would trouble your peaches. Releasing lacewings, ladybugs or other predatory insects can control  aphids or other pests.  If you see caterpillars, you might apply a spray of Bt to get them under control.  Spraying with dormant or sun oil can help prevent insect problems by keeping them away from your tree in the first place or smothering eggs or larvae that might be present.

        Frequent spraying of seaweed will help control pests as well as supply micronutrients.  Birds will occasionally sample your ripe fruit, but there is generally enough for everyone.  Cut out the bird bite and slice up the peach for dinner.

       There are certain varieties of butterflies/moths that gather around ripe peaches and may seem to be damaging the fruit. They do not, however, pierce the skins of the peaches themselves. They wait until a bird, branch or other critter pierces the skin, then they sip the nectar.  These creatures are attracted by rotting fruit and won’t damage otherwise healthy fruit.