Good thread Big Mike.
One thing I would mention is that it’s pretty common for people starting a backyard peach orchard to think they absolutely must have the best varieties.
That was the case for me long ago. I’ve also seen that in many examples of others starting to grow peach trees. The downside is that it can be very difficult to get that “perfect” peach tree.
Like many, I’ve posted a peach report for many years. The more experience I’ve gained with varieties, my opinions of various varieties have changed. Here is my latest one, which I posted 2 years ago.
I’d avoid “dogs” (like Belle of Georgia, PF24-007, Flavrburst, etc.) but a lot of the “really great” peaches are pretty close to others. Sometimes very very close.
As an aside, I’ve probably invited all kinds of disagreements mentioning the “dogs” above, i.e. “I grow Flavrburst and it’s really great for me.” Let me just clarify, the specific “dogs” I mentioned above, were losers for me here on the KS/MO line.
At one time I grew over a hundred varieties. I’ve probably trailed a hundred and fifty so far, if nectarines are counted. Currently we have 62 varieties. I’d like to get that number down to about 30 or 40.
Re: Winblo
This is where more experience helps. I’ve been all over the board about this peach. Initially, I thought the peach too stingy in production. Then it seemed more consistent. Now I’m back to not being so happy with it.
In 2023, it production wasn’t very good. In 2024, we didn’t have any peaches. In 2025, production was pretty much nil. I have a whole row of 25 trees which produced basically nothing. Plus some Winblo in another area of the orchard which produced nothing. However, Ernies Choice (which ripens at the same time) produced well this year. Likewise, Intrepid has really started to produce well (also same ripening window). I don’t have a whole lot of experience with Intrepid, but right now I’m pretty pleased with it.
Neither one of those peaches is as uniform as Winblo. But Intrepid is a great tasting peach. Ernies Choice is a very intense peach, which tastes better some years than Winblo. Though some years Ernies Choice can be tart. Peachy, but tart.
I’m just saying, I wouldn’t get too hung up on Winblo.
I plan to do a peach report for this year (we just finished 2025 peach season). When I do, I’ll post the link here, in case anyone is interested.