Protecting peach trees

[Stephen Blair]

I have some 5' peach trees that I want to protect from the winter elements , any tips ?

Thanks

[agg221]

The trees are pretty hardy - the usual problem isn't damage from frost and wind, it's the fact that they blossom early and the blossom -is- damaged by the frost, plus there aren't many insects about to pollinate, and they are also prone to peach leaf curl.

 

You can deal with the blossom issue by using agricultural fleece, but unless they're the cordon type they won't be cropping much at 5', so you're OK without it for this year. The best bet I've found is to make sure they're covered before the blossom buds start to show pink, then uncover them only to hand pollinate with a small camel hair artist's paintbrush. In theory you can leave the covers off except when frost is expected, but I tend to forget!

 

Peach leaf curl is a fungal infection and is seriously defoliating - it weakens the tree and eventually kills it. The spores are washed around, I think in Spring, so you either need to spray against it or rig a temporary waterproof cover.

 

The above is one of the reasons they're often grown against walls - it's easier to keep them warm and protect against frost, and rig covers or arrange a deep overhang to keep the rain from dripping on the leaves.

 

Alec

[Stephen Blair]

Thanks Alec, great info

[agg221]

You're welcome

 

You could pick up a copy of The Fruit Garden Displayed by Harry Baker - really sound book and a good chapter on peaches. A quick google search suggests that you can pick up a secondhand copy for as little as 63p!

 

Alec

[Stephen Blair]

Fantastic!

[Bearded Munch]

I have two small peach trees in my greenhouse have had no peach leaf curl on them and have picked peaches in July too, peach trees should be hardy enough to survive as other trees do and someone told me they put a polythene cover over them in late Jan for a few weeks and this stopped leaf curl (don't know if it was true or not).

[agg221]

The greenhouse is the trick here. You'll avoid the peach leaf curl and the blossom frosting issues. There's a great book called The Gardener's Assistant, published in the 1880s. It's aimed at head gardeners for big estates (with big greenhouses, or glasshouses as they were then referred to). There's a big section in one volume on the subject of growing fruit under glass, a lot of which is dedicated to peaches and nectarines, both fanned against the rear wall and also grown in pots. Audley End have got some of their kitchen garden operational again, including pot-grown fruit trees, which is quite interesting to see if you enjoy the subject.

 

Alec