That’s a great location for gathering chill hours. Santa Clara county used to be the same based on what I hear from old timers. This year, we got nice chilling weather since mid Feb that continued today. But it was too late for FS. My Emerald Beaut has the same CH requirements as FS but has better bloom. Early blooming, high chill varieties are a no go for me from now on.
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Chilling in mid February does not count when your trees are already awake and blooming. We need chilling during December and January, which California got very little these last 2 years. The first freeze for us was in late February this winter, highly unusual. We usually get over a dozen light freezes a winter. My point is that if we start getting normal winters you will have more blossoms and fruit. Also, all the rain we have had on bloom the last 2 years is not helping Your pollination or mine.
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wow, so many fruits!!! Thinning is going to he heartbreaking!
The bees did a terrific job with my Blenheim and Evas Pride before the rains. They have set tons of fruit. Going to be a bad year for rest of the cherries, pluots, peaches and nectarines. Its been raining non stop since they started blooming. Not a bee in sight when it rains. Hand pollination is impossible when the flowers are so wet.
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Glad to hear about your Blenheim and Eva’s Pride! Finally have sunshine today and looks like just a bit more rain tonight and a week of sunny weather! Hope you get a good set on your trees. As for thinning, with over a hundred stone fruit trees I am really not looking forward to that at all, lots of work. Thats one reason i like this tree so much, I just usually thin the doubles and a few others and I’m good. With most other trees I’m thinning many hundred fruits!