Common Peach: Featured Plant of The Day

Prunus persica
    Common Peach,  Flowering Peach,  Ornamental Peach

Type    Tree, woody plant
Hardy range    5B to 8A
Height    15' to 25' / 4.60m to 7.60m
Spread    15' to 25' / 4.60m to 7.60m
Growth rate    Fast
Form    Rounded
Exposure    Partial shade or partial sun to full sun
Persistence    Deciduous

Bloom Color    Pink, red and white
Bloom Time    Spring

The flowers are showy.

Environment
This plant tolerates some drought.
This plant will grow in dry soil.
Suitable soil is well-drained/loamy, sandy or clay.
The pH preference is an acidic to neutral (less than 6.8 to 7.2) soil.

Leaf Color    Green
Fall Color    Yellow
This plant has attractive fall colors.

Culture Notes
Peach trees are familiar to everyone but nearly impossible to keep in good shape.  Although trees last for only a short period (10 years or so in many landscape situations unless they receive good care and are not injured) they flower and bear fruit at an early age.  Locate the tree in an area away from turf, preferably in a large mulched bed.  This will allow the tree to develop with little competition from other plants, and minimize the chances of trunk damage from mowers and can extend its life. Plants perform best on north facing slopes in the Rocky Mountain region.

Peach trees tolerate some drought provided the roots are able to expand into a large are of soil well beyond the drip line. A regular fertilization program with slow release nitrogen is recommended to keep plants vigorous. Too much nitrogen in the soluble form could stimulate sprouting. This plant is considered mostly allergy free and causes little or no allergy problems in most people. Foliage from most members of this genus is considered poisonous when ingested. Cherries compartmentalize decay poorly meaning that decay can spread rapidly inside the tree following mechanical injury to the trunk or removing large branches.

Peach trees should be located in full sun or partial shade on very well-drained, moist, acid soils.  The trees should be kept on a regular spray and fertilization schedule to insure best fruit production but this is not needed if fruit is not important.  Avoid excessive pruning as this stimulates internal sprouting.  Many trees live only 8 to 15-years.

This plant resists Japanese beetles.

Maintain adequate mulch area

Clear all turf away from beneath the branches and mulch to the drip line to reduce competition with turf and weeds.  This will allow roots to become established quickly and keep plants healthier. Train and prune the trunks and branches so they will not touch each other.  Remove some secondary branches on main branches with included bark, or those that are likely to develop it, as soon as possible. This reduces the likelihood of splitting from the tree later, when the tree has grown to become an important part of the landscape.  Locate the tree properly, taking into account the ultimate size, since the tree looks best if it is not pruned to control size.  The tree can enhance any landscape with its delightful spring flush of flowers.  It can be the centerpiece of your landscape if properly located. Flowers develop from buds formed the previous year.

Tree establishment specifications

Choose good quality trees for planting. The most common cause of young tree failure is planting too deep.  In most instances, the point where the top-most root in the root ball originates from the trunk (referred to as the root flare zone or root collar) should be located just above the soil surface.  You may have to dig into the root ball to find the root flare. If there is nursery soil over this area, scrape it off. Never place ANY soil over the root ball. The planting hole should be at least twice the width of the root ball, preferably wider because roots grow best in loose soil.  In all but exceptional circumstances where the soil is very poor, extensive research clearly shows that there is no need to incorporate any amendments into the backfill soil. Simply use the loosened soil that came out of the planting hole. Simply planting with the topmost portion of the root ball slightly higher than the surrounding soil might still install the tree too deep - be sure to locate the root flare.

Weed suppression during establishment is essential.  Apply a 3-inch thick layer of mulch to at least a six-foot diameter circle around the tree. This area should be at least two feet in diameter for each inch of tree trunk diameter and maintained during the establishment period.  Apply a thinner layer of mulch directly over the root ball but keep it at least 10 inches from the trunk. This allows rainwater, irrigation and air to easily enter the root ball and keeps the trunk dry.  Placing mulch against the trunk and applying too thick a layer above the root ball can kill the plant by oxygen starvation, death of bark, stem and root diseases, prevention of hardening off for winter, vole and other rodent damage to the trunk, keeping soil too wet, or repelling water.

Regular irrigation after planting encourages rapid root growth that is essential for tree establishment.  Trees provided with regular irrigation through the first growing season after transplanting require about 3 months (hardiness zones 9-11), 6 months (hardiness zones 7-8), or one year or more (hardiness zones 2-6) per inch of trunk diameter to fully establish roots in the landscape soil. Trees in desert climates may take longer to establish.  Trees that are under-irrigated during this establishment period (and most trees are) often require additional time to establish because roots grow more slowly.   Be prepared to irrigate through the entire establishment period, especially during periods of drought.

Irrigation also helps maintain and encourage the desirable dominant leader in the tree canopy on large-maturing trees.  Instead of a dominant leader, trees that are under-irrigated during the establishment period often develop undesirable, low, co-dominant stems and double leaders that can split from the tree later.

Unlike established plants, which do best with deep, infrequent irrigation, research clearly shows that recently transplanted trees and shrubs establish quickest with light, frequent irrigation.  For trees planted in spring or summer, provide one (cooler hardiness zones) to three irrigations (warmer hardiness zones) each week during the first few months after planting.  Daily irrigation in the warmest hardiness zones provides the quickest establishment.  Following the initial few months of frequent irrigation, provide weekly irrigation until plants are fully established.  With every irrigation, apply one (cool climates) to two (warm climates) gallons of water per inch trunk diameter (e.g. 2 to 4 gallons for a 2-inch tree) over the root ball only.  In most landscapes that receive more than 30 inches of rain or irrigation annually, if the mulch area is maintained weed-free, irrigation does not need to be applied outside of the root ball.  Never add water if the root ball is saturated.

In cooler hardiness zones, in all but the driest years, irrigation of spring- and summer-planted trees usually can be discontinued once fall color has begun. Irrigation of fall planted trees, however, should be continued until foliage has dropped from the deciduous trees in the region.  In warmer climates, irrigate fall-and winter-planted trees as described for the spring- and summer-planted trees.

In drier, desert climates there is benefit to be gained from applying additional irrigation outside of the root ball area. This is best done by making a large diameter berm four to six inches high, then filling it with water so it percolates into the soil.  For the first two years, irrigate twice each week through the spring, once per week in summer provided monsoons arrive, and twice each week again in fall if it remains warm.  Taper off watering to once or twice each month in winter and resume twice weekly next spring.  For years three to five, water twice per month in spring, summer, and fall and once or twice per month in winter.  During years five through seven, water once every three weeks in warm weather and once every six weeks in winter.  After this, the drought-tolerant desert trees should be able to survive on natural rainfall.

Trees with good, strong structure need no pruning at planting, except to remove broken twigs.  Do not remove branches to compensate for root loss - research has shown that this can be detrimental to establishment.

Spring transplanting best

Balled-and-burlapped and bare root trees recover best when transplanted in late winter or early spring in the cooler portions of North America.  This usually corresponds to the initiation of root growth.