Hello! I am really happy to have found this forum. I am interested in growing a few peach and plum trees and need some recommendations. I have been reading the NC extension pages and they suggest growing the following peaches in my area: Redhaven, Norman, Carolina Belle (white-fleshed), Winblo, Contender, Summer Pearl (white-fleshed), Cresthaven, Encore, and Legend–and they suggest only Lovell or Halford rootstock. That is not a very long list of choices and most don’t get great taste-test reviews! I have been trying to locate nurseries that carry these varieties on Lovell or Halford rootstock and the only one I can find that has just a few of these is Rabbit Ridge Nursery in Coats, NC. (If you look at the Rabbit Ridge website, they are not overly excited about growing peaches. According to Rabbit Ridge “there is not much to marvel over” about peach trees!). Wow, I think a good home-grown peach is heavenly! There must be other cultivars that I can grow and I would love to get some suggestions regarding what others in my area have successfully grown.
Plums - here is the list from the NC extension website: Japanese: Methley (self-fruitful), Byrongold, Burbank, Ozark Premier (may bloom early). European: Bluefre, Stanley, Shrophire (Damson). Again, a very short list. The NC extension doesn’t say much about appropriate plum rootstocks -Is rootstock an important consideration when growing plums?
I have read good things about Ison’s Nursery and they do offer a lot of cultivars, but I believe their peaches are on Guardian rootstock and I am not sure about their plums. Would Guardian work in the Charlotte area? Based on reviews, I would love to try a couple of these: Au Rubrum, Beauty, Burgundy and Golden Nectar plums (from Ison’s), but they are not recommended by NC extension for my area, so I am hesitant. Ison’s also offers some hybrid trees: Candy Heart Pluerry, Sweet Treat Pluerry, Spring Satin Plumcot, Spice Zee Nectaplum, etc. Has anyone had success growing these hybrids in the lower Piedmont?
As you can probably tell, I am a newbie. I have only successfully grown the easy fruits: figs, mulberries, blueberries and blackberries. Even my triple-crown blackberry bushes that are 4 years’ old do not produce well for me. The Fuyu Persimmon that I grew for 3 years just succumbed to scale. (So now I know why the army of ants was running up and down the tree!. Live and learn - but I learned a little too late about Tangle Foot to save my persimmon). That won’t happen again. Anyway, I would love any suggestions, recommendations and tips from you seasoned fruit-growers. I don’t want to spend a lot of money on trees that I cannot successfully grow here in the Charlotte area. Thanks!