Air Layer peach tree

I have air layered fig trees and I want to grow peaches,and air layer seems to be the most economical way to get them, any one ever do itor have any ideas on this?

Unlike figs, peaches (and other stonefruit trees) are normally not grown on own roots. Therefore, air layering them does not make sense. The most economical way for peaches would be to buy rootstocks in bulk (or, even cheaper, grow your own as seedlings from pits, but that would give you rootstock with unknown properties and also set you back for year or two), and then graft the rootstock with scions of cultivars that are suitable for your climate.

. Yes peaches are not grown on their own roots, but certainly can be. I plan to grow seedlings out, so why not air layer plants? If I had available rootstock I would use it, but I do not. I will in the future.

I think peaches can be a little tricky to air layer. I believe @Alcedo has done it and if memory serves me correctly, he recommended just girdling the limb part of the way around instead of fully. Maybe he will see this and comment.

if it is just to preserve a few limbs for brief periods, especially when lacking rootstocks, then it could be the ‘last resort’. Otherwise, try to find young desirable rootstocks.
future health, vigor, pest/stress-resistance, and longevity of any scionwood is influenced greatly by the variety and age of rootstock.

peaches have very short lives in general(often not much more than 8 -15 productive years), even when grafted to vigorous and pest-resistant seedling rootstocks. Growing one on its own roots means the roots will be ‘as old’ as it is! That could signify the roots being 100’s of years old…
only means to ‘rejuvenate’ desirable(but short-lived) scions is to graft into younger roots. Wish we could do this on people!

Here is Alcedo old post.

http://forums.gardenweb.com/discussions/1515992/rooting-peach-and-nectarine-cuttings

Tony

Peaches are so easy to grow from seeds…heck just toss them in a compost pile and the following summer you’ll have more trees then you know to do with. They also come very true to the parent tree (most are self fertile).

As in other threads I crossed some, and want to cross more this year. So I’ll be growing out a lot of peaches. See if I can get something different. It’s nice to use Indian Free as the seed parent because it is not self fertile, so everything you know is some kind of cross. Hopefully with the pollen i supplied.

That Link is** not** Air Layer ! tt’s my discription how to propagate Peach by Cuttings!

Air Layer Peach is very successful by me.

Keep in mind: Peach on its own roots is prone to a high lime content in the soil! pH 6.5 is very conveniently.

Use the same application as with other tree crops, just girdling the limb part of the way around instead of fully !!

June is the best time of the year for this Job. Get plenty of leaf to the branch !! they need Sunshine!

Use a good hormone treatment. keeps medium moderately moist, airy environment beware of too wet!

Keep the root zone dark in shadow.( overheating)

Check in the autumn root formation, transplant in Spring.

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Hello I am new to this forum. And I wanted to contribute my succeesses with air layering a peach tree. I was able to achieve this after much failure in any other method of cloning. (I tried cuttings in Rock wool both hard and soft wood, I tried fog ponic hard wood and soft wood cuttings, I tried deep water and direct soil methods for not hard and soft wood. Frustration started 2 seasons ago.) finally I believe I have made a break through. And that is air layering which has proved to be the only successful method.

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Did you do anything other than just place the rooting media? Like constrict or girdle the bark or stem in any way? Rooting hormone?

Nice work…!!

I wanted to post a picture of the girdling. I can’t find it. I used the dip powder hormone. And the moss is just regular found moss that I collected on walks at parks and in the forest. It was mixed with wet mudd and sealed in plastic to kill the moss. Then after a month I pulled it out of the plastic and dried it in the sun and ground it up like dung.

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Here is the plant a few weeks after the picture was taken. It was cut from the mother plant and placed into a pot with leaf mould and some vermiculite in the inside around the new roots. And then a layer of sifted ground soil at the edges and on the base of the trees to give it some anchor in the soft soils untill it further rooted. ![image|562x1000](upload://40EnDeBRaErPgmNalvQHNJub4By.jpeg)

Also one last thing that should be noted this plant is still in a pot. I wanted to be able to pull it inside during the winter if it gets too harsh so the frost doesn’t kill it. I plan to plant it in early spring right when the ground unfreezes. I will post pictures if all is well. So far so good! And a note on the air layering, I used plastic wrap and a simple box cutter to cut the bark. I took off about three fingers width length the best way is to cut the top and the bottom clean around first and then score the vertical cut and then peel it off like a jacket. I had my moss in a cup of water. I squeezed it like a sponge and covered the wound and then wrapped it up like a pice of candy. I used plastic tape (what I had) I imagine string or anything could work if it will stay put. I think the timing is also key. And keeping it dark(I used foil). That being said late May early June are the times that seen the most promising. If you plan to airlayer, plan for it next year right now. Get the supplies ready. Plan which brances and locations you are attempting them. So when the window of probagation opens you will be ready to take action and not suffer. I had no succes my first go at this. But it is possible, not terribly hard just must be done at the right time and with the right method. I hope this will give other peach enthusiast (especially northern ones the confidence that they can clone a tree they like maybe you have to move and want to take your trees with? ) some people understand that heirloom plants are special. Some time they have genetics that have been in you family for generations. You can save it!! I’m also not claiming to be an expert on peaches their is probably better ways of probagation better strains to grow, but if you like me and you just enjoy playin. With your trees as a hobby and eating tasty fruit that you grew with out spending $$ or buying a bunch of fancy products this is a basic process that can be done with probably a grocery bag and some string. And you don’t need to used spagnum moss. I rarely buy things I can make myself. But spagnum is great if you want to buy it but it was not the only way, if you live in an area with lots of moss you can find quite a bit on decaying logs and shaded Lawns in parks and probably your own yard. Old paver bricks in muddy areas. You want to process it to make sure it is dry and free of pest and make sure it is dead. That can take a half of a season. So if you buy It it is way more economical. But also I make my own leaf mould and I compost my own fertilizers. It’s so simple and it is best way for the effort.

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I don’t want to wit years for fruit producing pits. Why can’t they be grown on their own root stock. They must have been at one point or another.

Chris in SOCAL.
Retired Marine
100% disabled combat veteran