Sunday 14 September 2014

Life's A Peach

Just about all of the peaches on my little peach tree split after the heavy rain we had a while ago, there were just two survivors.


I'd been looking forward to trying these all summer and the time finally came last week. They felt much softer than they had done and the fruit came away from the tree very easily.

This is what they looked like inside. Unfortunately, they were still rather hard and not at all juicy, but they did taste very peachy.


I'm hoping that I can do better next year. The tree is very small so I think I may keep it inside the greenhouse right through the year, this should avoid it having to cope with any sudden rainfall, therefore avoiding stone fruit pit split and should also reduce the threat of peach leaf curl.

I'm happy that I got a couple of peaches to try this year, I just need to make sure that they're up to scratch in future.

42 comments:

  1. I had a peach tree in my garden at Tydd, I kept it under a canopy to help prevent leaf curl. The fruit was sweet and juicy ( when there was any) and I was thinking of having one here, but in the greenhouse. I will think on it.

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    1. There definitely wasn't any juice in these peaches, I think I should have left them to ripen a little longer, though I don't really know if would have made any difference at this late stage in the season. My little tree is tiny so there'll be no problem keeping it in my small greenhouse, I think it will probably help.

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  2. Glad that you had the chance to taste some of your peaches Jo. They look most yummy. It's always hard to tell when fruit is exactly ready for eating. Hope that you have a larger crop next year.

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    1. I was happy with the fruit the tree supplied this year, it's just a shame that so many of them split. I hope it will go on to produce as many again next year. I'm not sure that these peaches would have ripened any more with it being late in the season, keeping the tree in the greenhouse may just help in future.

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  3. I'm glad you were able to try a couple. Mine looked to be doing well when a gale blew them all off! Slugs were happy with them though!

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    1. That's such a shame. I hope we both do better next year, it would be lovely to have some sweet, juicy, home grown peaches.

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  4. Well done, and I hope that you do better next year. These are something I would grow if I had a greenhouse. Flighty xx

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    1. I'm glad I had a couple to taste, but they really weren't very nice so I do hope I can do better next year. I think you really need a greenhouse for peaches otherwise you'd really need to construct some sort of covering to avoid peach leaf curl.

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  5. Well Jo,
    I think it is great that you got any fruit.
    I would be more than happy with two peaches.
    Keeping it inside seems like a good idea....I am sure you will do better next year :)

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    1. I was surprised that the tree produced the crop it did being so tiny. I hope it does as well next year, but I'm hoping that the fruit it does produce in future is more appetising.

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  6. How wonderful to have any fruit! Hope they are more appetising next year :)

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    1. The tree is so small that I really didn't expect any fruit but it's been a bonus being able to try it, even if it wasn't very appetising.

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  7. Let's hope that we both have some peaches ro try next year,

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    1. I hope we do. I was so looking forward to tasting them all year yet they were a bit of a let down. I hope my next lot are nicer than these.

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  8. In my experience, growing fruit is a lot harder (and less rewarding) than growing veg! I like your determination to do better though.

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    1. I think you're right. I'm quite new to growing fruit but I much prefer vegetable growing, and it seems much easier too.

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  9. Looks like a good start I can't imagine peaches are easy to get right.

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    1. I'm happy at my first attempt, I just hope to get things a bit better next time around.

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  10. My little peach tree doubles as a goal post, so all of my fruitlets were footballed off early in the season. Well done for growing two, lets hope next year they are juicy and delicious.

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    1. I can see how a peach tree wouldn't like to be used as a goal post. Let's hope we both do better next year.

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  11. I think you're off to a great start and your young tree has done better than mine, so you should be proud of yourself and your tree. I shall be giving my peach tree a jolly good talking to and let it know that I expect great things from it next year. (I'm not convinced that this is sound horticultural practice).

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    1. I was surprised that the tree did so well this year, I hope that bodes well for future years. If talking to plants is good enough for Prince Charles then I think it's good enough for the rest of us too.

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  12. I'm sure you were happy that two peaches survived and you were able to try them. That's a good start. It can be satisfying when there's success at growing something new, but there's often a lot of learning along the way!

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    1. I'm really pleased that I got to taste the peaches, even if they weren't all that good. I don't think gardening would be half the fun if everything turned out brilliant first time, the enjoyment is in the learning and the trying to get it right.

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  13. At least you got to try a couple Jo. I think it's been a funny year for fruit, or it has in my garden, I've only got 5 apples to eat next month. Hopefully your peach will do well inside and you'll have more for next year.

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    1. I'm glad I got to try them, that was the main thing for me this year. Now I can concentrate on getting it right for next year.

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  14. Looks so yummy! I don't know when I could taste the fresh mature peach from the tree. I hope there are some varieties that adaptable to tropical area. So I can grow it on my garden...:)

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    1. Peaches aren't really a fruit which are known for growing well here, but we do try. Having a greenhouse certainly makes life easier.

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  15. Those peaches look delicious....

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    1. They didn't taste the best, I'm just hoping that they do better next year.

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  16. I think you are very clever to get any peaches at all! My mum and dad had an amazing peach tree which was very old but very prolific, however it had to come to down eventually :(

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    1. I wasn't expecting to harvest any peaches this year so I'm pleased with what I got, even though they weren't very appetising. It's a shame that such a prolific tree had to come down, it's always sad when a tree comes to the end of its life.

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  17. I always think of peaches as hard to grow but have heard they withstand frost and low temperatures. Maybe cobbler would be a good way to use your peaches.

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    1. The information which came with my little tree says that it's totally winter hardy, however, in my opinion you would need to give it some protection against peach leaf curl. With it being so small, it's easy enough to pop it in the greenhouse. A cobbler may have been good if I'd got a few more peaches.

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  18. They do look good, shame they were hard. I had leaf curl and so my peaches were horrid looking, I still have about 15 and they are still growing, they're hard though even though some are turning red.....it will be interesting to see how they turn out.xxx

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    1. I think I should have left the fruit on the tree for a while longer, I'll know next time. I hope yours ripen up for you, it's no fun growing something and not being able to eat it.

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  19. Well they look good anyway - mine just haven't developed at all and just drop off - perhaps I haven't been watering the container enough (or maybe too much) it's hard to tell how much water the trees actually need. Better luck next year.

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    1. I think getting the watering right is one of the main problems with growing in a container. I think I'm going to repot mine soon, the container it's in is quite small.

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  20. I am very impressed with your peaches -- not good at fruit trees myself. However, I grew some good cantaloups this year. P. x

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    1. I haven't been growing fruit very long so I'm still a long way off mastering it. I've never tried growing melons, though I know it's possible in the UK, perhaps I'll give it a go one year.

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  21. At least you had 2 fruits in the end. I think peaches are a tricky fruit to grow in the UK. To be honest the ones I have bought from the supermarket are always hard too. Keeping it in the greenhouse sounds like a good idea and I'n sure as it matures you'll get more fruit. Have a lovely weekend.

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    1. You're right. My peaches probably weren't any worse than the ones I could buy in the supermarket, but it will be good to give them another go next year. I'd like to see if I can do better.

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