Description
Prunus persica – Peach – Flowering Peach – Nectarine – This spreading, deciduous tree from China was introduced into the Mediterranean over 1,000 years ago grows 12-25′ feet tall and 25′ feet wide. It produces narrowly elliptic, slender pointed, glossy, mid to dark green leaves, 4-6″ long. In early and mid spring before the leaves it bears solitary, bowl shaped, pinkish red flowers, 1 ½” across, followed by spherical, velvety downy, edible, red blushed yellow fruit, 3″ across.
Other varities include:
‘Helen Borchers’ – bears semi double, rose pink flowers and is non-fruiting
‘Klara Meyer’ -is a shrubby form and bears double, bright peach pink flowers with frilled petals and is non fruiting
‘Peppermint Stick’ – bears double white flowers with red stripes and is non fruiting
‘Prince Charming’ – is upright growing 12′ feet tall and half as wide and bears double, dark pink flowers.
Grow in any moist but well drained, moderately fertile, humus enriched soil, deciduous species and cultivars in full sun. Trim deciduous hedges after flowering, evergreen in early or mid spring. Protect from strong wind.
Feed with high nitrogen fertilizer. Few are drought tolerant. Prone to caterpillars, borers, scale insects, aphids, crown gall, mushroom root rot, eriophyid mites, crown gall, dieback, lesions, fireblight, leaf curl, powdery mildew, mosaic spot viruses, ring spot viruses, and silverleaf disease.
Zones 4-8
