Peach tree

General Fruit Growing
#1

Hi

I have read my peach book “the peach : world cultivars to marketing” when i some time ago read about peach varieties and rootstocks, when I read on internet there is now days more choices to choose for peach rootstocks. Well i guess nursery might have more choices, but i found fruit grower have less choices, i got the rootstock for my Red Heaven which nursery had. In U.S.A. Lovell peach rootstock look common. I have Red Heaven on St Julien A rootstock, which is Prunus Institia.

When i looked about variety descriptions and rootstock, there is good amount information about peach variety descriptions and test results showing sweetness of peaches, production level, growing results and taste. I used english, Italy, slovenia, spanish language on internet to get information.

I found some information on peach rootstock on internet, but I got some research from library which cost money because some information showed only summary of test results on internet. I used many language here too to get information. I got quite good idea about peach rootstocks, but information is somewhat contradictory. For example I remember Lovell peach rootstock is said to not produce suckers, but I saw one result each somewhere has made a sucker. I think still it is generally right to say that Lovell don’t produce suckers. I have founded that you can have peach tree on other fruit tree too, but it should be relatively close to peach in other words Prunus. Peach is Prunus persica in latin name. I have looked peach, almond, plum both European and Asian species rootstock information. I have read information about how rootstock affect peach tree size, flowering, fruit size, different aspect of fruit sweetness sucrose was one if i remember right, drought resistance, water logging resistance, different nematode resistance, some disease like armillaria mellea. As you can use some plum and hybrid rootstock, there is need that those are compatible with fruit tree varieties. Not all like to work well on peaches, for example Prunus Besseyi western sand cherry doesn’t like to work with peaches alone well. I have looked quite a bit information about nematodes, it didn’t look feel good so much there was bad things about peach rootstocks in those nematodes. As I looked those peach rootstock, i needed to look those earlier mentioned fruit tree rootstock too to get more and better image of this rootstock thing. I have only read on internet and papers i don’t have own experience of this thing. I might have in my memory some information about those rootstock, but i am quite quiet people, so i don’t write much. Here is few things which i can write.

Adesoto which is Prunus Instita from Spain rootstock for peaches, and have showed good graft computability with almonds, apricot, european plum and Japanese plum. It produces suckers. It might have resistance of armillaria mellea which is in South eastern U.S.A. second deadliest disease after bacterial canker. It is oak root rot or maybe honey fungus which it causes. It can kill peach trees. As it is plum it don’t get much of root knot nematodes, results from Spain has it on highly resistance on resistance rating. On my peach book it have image on that nematode, which if peach is attacked by this nematode it can’t get proper conditions any way. This seems to be 1 of 3 biggest nematodes for fruit tree crops. I think this nematode is in southeastern U.S.A, i think it is less problem in northern U.S.A, as i think it needs warm soil.

I might mention Ishtara rootstock which was in Michigan, Ann Arbor there for european plum variety Stanley test, If i remember it increased fruit size about 10% and produced big crop. I haven’t checked it recently, so i might remember wrong. There was no hardiness issue in rootstocks Michigan, but early in test Ishtara was wobbling in wind, as i guess it had so much weight on fruit. That didn’t happen in later time in test. Ishtara is hybrid from France, it is (cherry plum x Asian plum) x (cherry plum x peach), (Prunus cerasifera x prunus salicana) x (prunus cerasifera x prunus persica) rootstock for peaches, apricot and plum, although i have seen it having almonds on it in California. It rarely sucks. It is susceptible to bacterial canker, as is most rootstock. Almond yield was little bit better than Lovell on Ishtara rootstock. Lovell is somewhat resistance for bacterial canker, relative term although. I think we don’t know rootstock which is immune for that disease.

I have read something about borers, that some peach trees have died off it. I don’t know information about this, but it looks like those goes to trunk or slightly below it inside trunk. Some kind of moth when i looked on internet. I have read on Massachusetts peach test there when plantings got attacked borers, ishtara was resistant, One book says “has shown good resistance peach tree borer in the U.S.A. (Synanthedon exitiosa).”. I don’t know more about this, resistance for this moth other than this. Lovell has advantage that it is peach so it have good graft compatibility for peaches. I think means no much worry about rootstock not taking some peach varieties.

#2

Hi Dennis,

Glad you made it over to this forum.

Regarding peach rootstocks, I’ve grown peaches on the following P. Persica rootstocks: Lovell, Bailey, Halford, Redleaf, Tenn. Natural, Guardian.

Only once have I seen any of these rootstocks throw a sucker up (it was just one). I’ve also used several peach seedlings for my own peach grafts, and those don’t sucker either.

I’ve not grown peaches on St. Julian. Please report back how your Redhaven peach does for you.

Some types of root knot nematodes which attack peach trees are found in cold climates (i.e. Wisconsin). Soil type is a big factor for parasitic nematodes which affect fruit trees. Nematodes prefer sandy or loamy soil.

Peach tree borers can be a problem here. I can’t remember for sure, I’m thinking you are in Iceland? As your tree grows, you may find you don’t have many pests. I think you mentioned you couldn’t find a nursery selling peach trees in your country. If there are not many peach trees in your country, there may not be as many pests of them either.

#3

hi

I forgot to say that if you have peach tree on rootstock which works for you, it is good for you then i guess. I think maybe it is something like peach varieties, if you have good Red Haven peach variety why you or breeders want to try make new varieties then? I guess they want better varieties for better color or better taste. So thinking same way if Lovell rootstock works, someone might want to find better way to deal with some problems than Lovell say for example root lesion nematode or root knot nematode.

Above mentioned book talks a lot of nematodes, there is also root lesion nematode Pratylenchus Vulnus, dagger nematode and ring nematodes. Nematodes are some kind of worm which are in soil, you can see root knot nematode or maybe more accurately galls they form to the root. Other nematodes are so small you don’t see them in soil, unless you do soil test. My book said nematodes are bad and cause crop losses, I think they are not easy to get rid of and I think it is more of to live with them. I meant there is not much to do if they are in the soil, book said they are underlining importance of this subject. I don’t get information how they affect peach much, I got that ring nematode predispose to bacterial canker which then can kill peaches. They can stunt peach tree growing, but how it is effect on peach hardiness or flowers? I found that technical thing on internet and some information about that but not common way information much. I guess we can think this way too, if we can grow peaches in Michigan and Ohio with some of those nematodes and get peaches they are not that bad that can prevent peaches, then we can live with them some way. If they was too big trouble for peaches, would we grow peaches in other words?

Olpea hi

I think root suckering might happen for soil reaction reason. Peach rootstock have relative narrow ph range. So it might happen because something happened on soil. Or it may have something to do with winter injury. There might be some other explanations as well.

I think it may take sometime to get growing started here, so it take sometime to see how my Red Heaven did in winter.

I looked about root knot nematode, the results which I told was for Meloidogyne Javanica. There is many root knot nematodes and many root lesion nematode. I think that is general name for that nematode. That I previously said can be in southeastern U.S.A. but likely not in northern U.S.A. I think soil is not enough warm there to that nematode, but you mentioned northern area i think Meloidogyne Hapla can occur northern U.S.A. There is not much information how different nematodes within same genus affect peach like Pratylenchus Vulnus and Pratylenchus Penetrans. I think you are right about nematodes like sandy soil, i think it is because sandy soil warms up faster than soil that is wet. Yes soil type might have influence on nematodes, but i think it varies what nematode is in question.

I live in finland. I found nursery which had peach trees but we don’t have a lot of varieties available. I think if growing is not very warm, it may also limit disease. I have not heard bacterial canker here. I did found on internet one paper which showed some nematodes on here. Regarding your last thing, i guess you are right not much peaches here but i know we have them here. Not much information about peaches in books here, so i need to look on other source for information. I still try to grow peaches, as peaches are good.