Fruit Trees in Zone 8

[jtharper76]

Ok after growing Tomatoes now for 3 years with success, I am ready to add to my little back yard with 2 types of fruit trees. I want to start a Peach (not sure what variety) and a Satsuma (again not sure what variety). So I have some questions that I need to get answers to and the VILLE has been so good for my tomatoes now I am hoping to get some great advice on peaches and satsumas.

Question #1 - I know Satsumas will grow well here in Zone 8 of Louisiana, but what about peaches?

Question #2 - Could you recommend some varieties that you think would do well in this area

Question #3 - When do I plant these? I know I will not get fruit year one but I need to know when to plant them.

Thanks for any help you could give

Jeremy

[jdwhitaker]

http://www.lsuagcenter.com/en/commun...er+Peaches.htm

[veggie babe]

jd, where are you in Texas? I am planting new variety peach trees this year. I thought I had my list until I read your post. What variety do you grow?

Neva

[mensplace]

Originally Posted by jtharper76

Ok after growing Tomatoes now for 3 years with success, I am ready to add to my little back yard with 2 types of fruit trees. I want to start a Peach (not sure what variety) and a Satsuma (again not sure what variety). So I have some questions that I need to get answers to and the VILLE has been so good for my tomatoes now I am hoping to get some great advice on peaches and satsumas.

Question #1 - I know Satsumas will grow well here in Zone 8 of Louisiana, but what about peaches?

Question #2 - Could you recommend some varieties that you think would do well in this area

Question #3 - When do I plant these? I know I will not get fruit year one but I need to know when to plant them.

Thanks for any help you could give

Jeremy

Re varieties, especially for the south, and for fresh eating. In my experience the best peach EVER is Belle of Georgia. NOT for shipping or any use that would involve bruising, but for fresh eating a luscious, super sweet, smooth texture and a beauty with its white color and hints of pink. Totally unlike the yellow fleshed shippers. Simply delicious.

[jtharper76]

Ok Now I know what types of peaches and Satsuma I want to plant. My question now is when do I put these trees in the ground??

[BlackestKrim]

The most important thing for peaches is you have to get one with the correct chilling hours. A tree with too few chilling hours will bud/set fruit too early and can have it killed in a late frost. One that has too many chilling hours sets fruit too late in the season.

I am in zone 8b, but our conditions here are completely different. I get information from Texas A&M websites on agriculture; perhaps you have a college with a big agriculture department? They should have information somewhere. Look for something like the chart at the bottom of this page or this page. It show chilling requirement (chilling hours) for certain varieties.

Also important is drainage. If you dig a hole for the free, fill it with water and make sure it drains well. If it doesn't, you might want to plant the tree above ground. Just make a wood frame for a border and fill it with good dirt.

Peaches are great. My grandfather used to grow them in our old country place. Bushels of fresh peaches are the best part of summer.

Update:
This site says:

Peaches
Peaches were grown on approximately 600 acres. Gross farm value in 1999 was $958,000, which is down 47% from 1998. Low farm value was due to low fruit production. Calhoun Research Station recorded 597 chill hours in the winter of 1998-1999. This is the lowest number of chill hours recorded at Calhoun since they have been keeping records. The number of chill hours at Calhoun Research Station averages around 900 hours. Inadequate chill hours cause most fruit to drop from trees before ripening. A late freeze that occurred in March also severely damaged the fruit of the low chill peach varieties.

But I have no idea how close you are to Calhoun.

http://www.sandybarnursery.com/chill-map.htm
http://www.raintreenursery.com/chill_hours.htm

chill hour maps seem to vary, so I'd trust whatever your local agriculture extension says.

[BlackestKrim]

You typically want to put peaches into the ground while they are dormant. My sister here in Austin is planting hers right now. It's Jan-Feb in my area.

[jtharper76]

Blackestkrim, I have a call into the "Peach Expert" for our area from the LSU ag center. Guess I will see what he says... I have got the tomatoes down pat and now I want to move on the Satsumas and Peaches. I found varieties that LSU says will grow well here but I am having a tough time actually finding those varieties for sale here. Anyway thanks again!

[mensplace]

Originally Posted by jtharper76

Ok Now I know what types of peaches and Satsuma I want to plant. My question now is when do I put these trees in the ground??

ASAP...Any fruit tree planted in the extreme south needs time to develop some roots before the heat of summer....especially if you have sandy or loose soil. The bigger the hole with any needed amendments or ph correction, the better. DO NOT FERTILIZE or use any fertilizer type root starters. Fill the hole with water before planting and let it finish absorbing before doing anything else. Also would help to use a dormant oil spray to help prevent dehydration (speaking about peaches as I have no experience with a satsuma). Will have to look up what a satsuma is. Do spray for insects before and after the blooming period, but it is best not to allow it to set fruit the first year. Prune the peach considerably. I find it best even with the typical open/vase shape to allow about six inches between the branches. Optimally you want three or four that are at various levels surrounding the main trunk. peaches need air and light in the middle and a strong framework. Having branches directly across from one another is an invitation to later splitting when they have to bear weight. Sterilize your pruners with a tablespoon of bleach in a gallon of water. If you have a lot of broken or tangled/misfigured roots...take it back for another. The same goes for roots that have been overly cut and are too short. In sandy soil it is best to stake and wire. Water regularly, but don't keep the soil always wet; that invites pests and disease. Do look for any signs of wilted leaves, swellings in the branch stems or little holes with sap oozing later. Start fertilizing the following spring, but don't use a high nitrogen fertilizer even then, just a balanced 10-10-10 and trace elements if needed. Don't buy a dwarf peach...even the standard peach is compact and has far hardier rootstock. Buy only a tree that has healthy looking bark with moisture, no cuts or bark scrapes, and limb spacing that will allow you to prune it to the proper shape. If it is potted in anything that looks like pure pine bark and wood chips, get rid of the "soil". Don't use too much sphagnum and don't use manure when planting. Just use enough soil amendment to lighten the soil if needed.

[John3]

jtharper76
Have a look here -It looks like their Peach Trees are 9.95 each (they have apple trees like Fuji and many more for 9.95 each and the Kieffer pear self pollinating for 9.95 each ) -if you call them be sure to know your chill hours for any help with type of peaches - they list quiet a few. When I went to Wal Marts they where $17.00 each
http://www.willisorchards.com/catego...FSURswodmxWbbA

BTW if you have chill hours adverage 1,000 hours you should be able to grow any fruit or nut tree they have (I think)