Supposedly Redhaven lasts much longer than the 15-year peach tree average.
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My Redhavens haven’t. One succumbed to green leaf, another to boring insects, both in well under 15 years. But the peaches sure were delicious while they lasted.
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I have red havens for that reason
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I remember helping my dad and uncle planting a block of red havens when I was a very young lad. That was a long, long time ago. They lasted a lot longer than 15 years. They were great peaches and are still one of my favorite varieties.
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Redhaven is one of those varieties that just keeps going. My dad had one that outlasted everything else in the garden by years. Not the most exciting peach but reliable in a way that matters more once you’ve lost a few trees to borers or disease.
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Same here. My Redhaven was progressively declining in years 8-9 with canker. It got the axe this spring. Last year, I grafted Redhaven to seedlings, so I have a backup. Glenglo, Ernie’s Choice, and Contender still look good.
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Zombie,
Uuuugghh. My redhaven trees are currently in 8th leaf and just getting started. I’ll update with pics as the season progresses. I hope they don’t crap out next year (they certainly look like they’ll make it to 20 years)
That said, the anecdotal hearsay we’re providing isn’t scientific in a matter of speaking. I could point to orchards I know that have had peach trees humming for more than 25 years but that’s neither scientific or exactly evidence of anything either. It’s merely me spouting an anecdote. Hearsay really. A better comparison would be to spell things out better.
For instance, my zone (6b) my soil profile, strongly acidic well drained glacial till. # of trees. (150 redhavens, yes I have that many of one variety). Average age of trees (7th and 8th leaf). Topographic location. Foot and toe slope.
Current and immediate past issues. Heavy feer losses on first planting 13 years. Deer fence fixed that. Poor soil nutrition, fixed that with lime and 60 lbs per acre of nitrogen fertilizer. Bacterial spot and leaf curl…3 back to back to back dry years sucked that dry (for now, they will make a reemergence when rainfall differs. Japanese beetles. The traps put a huge dent in the population. Oriental Fruit moth. I just put mating disruptors out for them. Results remain to be seen.
For now they’re rocking on. I’m not in the future, I don’t know what the results will be, I do know I will be bemoaning my lost youth though.
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I planted Redhaven in 2015, Early Redhaven in 2018. They’re both going strong.
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I have noticed that varieties I have grown have vastly different lifetimes, but it seems the rootstock, location, and overall bug and disease pressure are more important than the variety.
That said there are some varieties that do appear to fare better. The thing that makes a difference is how susceptible they are to the diseases that don’t control well with whatever control regimen is being used, and for me that is now bacterial canker. Peaches get long-term canker infections in my climate and it slows them down. If RedHaven had better canker resistance then it could last longer for me.
@Olpea I’d be interested in your perspective on this with your experience with so many varieties.
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