oh gosh you probably didnt and i just made a connection that didnt exist. from @MinnesotaApricot’s table it looks like they are very similar. what is the deal with “red haven”? is that the time ripening in days before and after that variety?
That’s a good question. So, Redhaven peach was the glory of the South Haven, MI breeding program of Stanley Johnston, starting in the late 1940s releases. There were lots of “haven” peaches released. Most of them have dwindled away and so are no longer planted widely.
But…Redhaven was a star. It doesn’t get a lot of praise on this forum. I think that has mostly to due with it’s ripening time which corresponds to a lot of wet weather for folks on the East Coast. Also there are nects and various unique peaches which ripen during that window, which may somewhat outperform Redhaven on taste, but not on overall attributes as it relates to Midwestern results.
Redhaven is a staple for the Midwest. That’s because it sets heavy in all but the worst weather. Sizes well unless severely overcropped. Colors beautifully. And tastes great, unless there is tons of rain the week before it harvests.
Because of all these attributes, it is still the most widely planted peach in the world. That’s saying something since it was released around 1948. Of my roughly 700 peach trees, I think I have more Redhavens than any other single cultivar. Redhaven is also the most widely requested peach at my orchard.
So…since it’s the most widely planted peach, most cultivars harvest times are plus/minus Redhaven.
Some southern nurseries still gauge ripening times as plus/minus Elberta (because that was a VERY widely planted peach for a long time. But most nurseries don’t base ripening time off Elberta. It’s an old 1880s peach out of Georgia which hardly anyone plants anymore.
It’s my opinion that southern nurseries still hold to tradition with Elberta as a marker. I don’t see any other reason because no one plants it. It ripens roughly 30 days after Redhaven, depending on your locale.
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thanks for the history lesson in peaches! would you say that these varieties would be a good staggered lot?
earlystar
redhaven
contender
encore
it looks like there is an early sport of redhaven too.
Red haven was the peach that got me buying over 20 varieties…
It’s a delicious peach, even being a commonly sold one. The contenders I’ve had have been too acidic to taste as good. Red haven’s have the perfect balance in my opinion.
Sun crest if you want juicy.
If it rains a lot where you are like me in the PNW, you’ll need some type of cover for them for it to be decent. I grow all of mine in pots currently and have been for years. Was waiting for my forever home to put them in ground and now i have one but i still need a lot of clearing to do before I can plant them still.
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what arent you growing?!
when does it usually ripen?
this is what weatherspark.com says about our rain:
The rainy period of the year lasts for 10 months, from February 14 to December 25, with a sliding 31-day rainfall of at least 0.5 inches. The month with the most rain is June, with an average rainfall of 4.5 inches.
what do you use for cover?
Those are fine choices, except for Encore.
Encore is for sure reliable. Very reliable!
But we’ve had problems here with it being a bit too low on sugar. So the eating quality isn’t the best most years.
Carolina Gold, which ripens a few days earlier, isn’t as reliable, but much better flavor. PF35-007 ripens a few days after Encore. Again better flavor, imo.
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Oh that sounds so wrong haha… it’s usually mid October- early November to March with November and December having the most rain but sometimes it moves to October- November. 4 months straight with November being almost every dam day and every other to every few days the other months.
I stick them under cover of sorts. Right now, i have a fairly large 20x15 back patio but I’ve also got greenhouse covers and poles made too just in case. I’m planning on getting a grow tunnel eventually and/or making greenhouse rain covers for everyone individually.
I’ve failed lychee and rambutan 
can’t get a hold of mangosteen. Pineapple is counterproductive in my opinion. Plus it eats you 
there’s a lot of things. I haven’t gotten jujube but I’m planning on grabbing one soon. Been wanting Mirabelle plums but maybe next year 
Rain Tree doesn’t seem to want to sell me the 5 in 1’s mirabelle’s in the last 4 years I’ve tried so i may just buy one of each from everyone else. I’m still looking for those small plums Seattle used to plant everywhere… been wondering if they’re mirabelle’s because Nadia is bigger than i expected.
Haven’t gotten Goumi, yet haven’t tried loquat so i haven’t gotten that as well but i might pick one up in February from Restoring Eden.
I just like growing things and grazing in the summer 
plus having everything around, i don’t have to worry about the kids or dogs eating pesticides since i don’t spray outside of fungicide in the early and late winter. And i live in the middle of no where now so in case of emergency, i still have my food forest 
and a bunch of bunnies running around if i ever need meat too. We have a ridiculous amount of bunnies where i am.
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There are actually a couple Redhaven sports that I can think of. One is Early Redhaven, the other is Garnet Beauty.
Both ripen about 2 weeks before Redhaven here. Both are very similar in fruit characteristics. I slightly prefer Early Redhaven over Garnet Beauty. But, both are inferior to Risingstar, which ripens in the same window.
Risingstar is a really good quality peach, as grown here. It’s productive, tastes great, nice color and size (for an early peach).
One other thing I’d mention is to make sure you get your trees from a reputable nursery. Redhaven is such a well known peach, some places will tag trees “Redhaven” (even though they aren’t) because people will recognize the name, and it will sell.
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I’m in 5A growing:
Contender
Reliance
Frost
Intrepid
Carolina Gold
Challenger
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Is Risingstar about the same time as 8-Ball? I’ve got some Risingstar scion ready to graft.
recently z4b here. planted contender 1st. it grew the 1st summer but never leafed out the following spring. i planted a reliance. i gave me 1 fruit last summer. last spring i planted a redhaven. i know im really pushing it. might try contender again or intrepid.
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if this their ripening order as well?
no, I just listed them. They’re too new for me to be accurate on that…
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