It is an extremely vegetative variety for me as well. but still tends to provide enough very tasty little peaches when they are most welcome. I’m a northeast grower so you might want to ask a commercial grower in your own state if it usually bears at least some crop. If you aren’t a commercial grower I recommend you try this one simply because in its season it is currently the only one. Its fruit acquires very high brix for being so early- more than the next later round. Bearing lightly and its relatively small fruit probably helps. Otherwise, it doesn’t have much time to build up sugar in my region-springs are often grey, wet and cool.
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I could probably also recommend it as a backyard peach for someone who has room for several varieties, or wants the the very earliest possible decent peach.
I’ve noticed the longer I’m in the commercial end of the business, the more I adopt Rick’s philosophy, “If it doesn’t pay, it doesn’t stay.” That’s why I got rid of Rich May
I started out with over 100 varieties of peaches. I’m now down to 55. The ones I got rid of didn’t pay for one reason or another.
Sometimes the decision is difficult. A couple months ago I debated with myself whether or not to get rid of Raritan Rose. It’s a pretty good white peach, by my tastes. But it wasn’t easy to sell, bruises very easily, and drops badly. I finally elected to get rid of it. That said, it’s one I’d recommend for a backyard orchard, though some years it doesn’t bear much here (most years it’s productive).
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I would alternatively consider an early apricot like Early Blush, it is late June on the ACN chart. I have heard it is a bit stingy on the harvest, my graft got deer munched so I didn’t get enough years of experience to find out but I got enough fruits to prove it is very tasty.
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this does make sense. Thank you. And I love your discussion about Rich me peaches. I was reading that post yesterday and the day before. Thanks also for the detailed list that you also posted last year about peaches varieties.
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I actually have a mulberry tree That I ordered on stark brothers this year. I’m pretty excited about it. It’s the dwarf version but that is the only one I could fit. A person that lives down the street from me has a giant mulberry tree in their front yard. I stopped and picked some this year and they were amazing. I just hope this dwarf bush is similar in productivity and taste.
I have several different mulberries including the dwarf. If you have deer those dwarf are not going to make it without a fence. Mine have been the same size with no fruit for three years thanks to them. They all taste basically the same with slight differences. If you like the one you tasted you will like the one you bought.
Scott. I tried to find this variety online but didn’t get far. I will keep looking. Thanks for the suggestion. Hopefully I can find a dwarf or semi dwarf variety 
Rich may. Haha.
I only had deer the first year we lived in this house. We had no fence and there was bushes and grain in the backyard. Now I have 6ft fence all around and grass so I hope I’m out of the danger zone 
ACN sells it but they are out of stock already.
I would not look for a dwarf stock for an apricot, any apricot can be kept small with pruning. I think I have half a dozen different kinds of roots on my apricots and all the trees I can harvest without a ladder.
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Oh ok. I just remember when We would go over to my grandparents house how large their trees were. Of course I was young but it seems like they were as large as the house. LOL
I do on one dwarf apricot that I planted two years ago. Is there a reason not to choose dwarf? I am guessing the rootstock he’s not as strong?
Does anyone have suggestions on where to find a rich May peach tree? I would have to buy it online and can’t seem to find
And/or maybe some scion wood. I thought of maybe trying to grafted onto another variety I can buy from a local nursery.
I’m not a fan of dwarfing rootstocks and agree with scott. I have found that the more standard rootstocks out perform dwarfing stocks in just about every way. I have some 20 foot apricots but, this winter I am adopting scotts method of keeping them just out of deer range, but not much more. Stone fruits are such a hassle and keeping them small seems like the easiest way to care for them.
Rich May is a Zaiger product and most likely only a select few are selling it.
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There isn’t really such a thing as a dwarf apricot stock in any case, they are at best “semi dwarf”. Citation is one of the few in that category and it has its own set of problems. I never had a cot on Citation but the peaches I had were not vigorous enough (in the west it seems to do better). All you have to do is prune and you can keep it small and still get a good crop. I have not started on my cots yet this winter but I am removing 100’ of wood or more from a single tree when pruning.
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Hi Chris,
Vaughn Nursery lists Flavorich, which I believe is the same tree as Rich May.
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Now that I put one against my south wall I expect it will be reasonably productive and consistently adequately sweet. I got some excellent cots from a bearing age tree I put their last fall. At another site it’s performed fairly well out in the open.
But it’s not a peach. Cherries also provide June fruit if you net them and you grow them out in the open and it doesn’t rain too much when they are ripening and squirrels don’t tear through the net. I’ve started growing them again and harvested some fruit last year.
Of course, peaches and cots often require protection as well, it’s just the issue of birds with cherries seems to apply everywhere.
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I noticed they had the flavorich but I didn’t know it was the same. I will check it out. Thank you.
Thanks for all your help guys. I’m going to look into the flavor-rich peach. I looked up the date That most Alberta peach trees ripen and it is around first of September to mid September. That would put the flavor Rich tree right at the end of June and first of July.
That’s crummy to hear about the apricot. I will see how this one does over the next few years and if it is not productive enough then I will take your advice. I only have about a space with about 6 feet on each side. Is it possible to train it similar to a standard peach tree? That small?
Hi Chris1,
I live in Taylorsville, UT. My dad and I have several fruit trees. I would like to discuss trading grafts. Call me 801-215-9173.
Hello Brock. Most of my trimmings have went to the dump already or in my fire pit. I do have a few that I saved only three different varieties. Elephant heart plum, Fantasia, nectarine, and Harrow diamond peach.
What type of fruit scion wood are you looking for? What do you mostly have also?
Hi Chris,
I just bought my trees, so I think it would be best to graft just before Spring next year. I am interested in knowing what other varieties you have.
I have: Elberta peach, red haven peach, hale haven, Anjou pear, comice pear, Seckel pear, Bartlett pear, gravenstein apple, Braeburn apple, Lodi apple, gala apple, empire apple, bing cherry, rainier cherry, van cherry, Earlitreat peach, OctoberFest Peach, and Red Rome Beauty Apple. We will be grafting on a Johnathan Apple from my dad.
The Braeburn apple is the trunk on one of my trees, so I have to stimulate it to grow a branch to get any of that kind of fruit.
We were given 1 carlet belle, we bought 6 seascape, and 6 eversweet, 25 Honeoye Strawberry Junebearer, 25 Ozark Beauty Strawberry Everbearer, 25 Sparkle Strawberry Junebearer. 1 Canby Raspberry, 6 logan berry, 1 mule berry tree, AC Sweet pomegranate, Sweet Pomegranate, Anna Kiwi, Issai Kiwi, Ken’s red kiwi and a Einset grape.
I will also look for a grafts for a Bell of Georgia Peach, and a JH Hale Peach.
My dad has several varieties, and I could get branches to graft of some of his varieties too. I also ran into a guy in Roy, that has probably 30 varieties.
Let me know if you are interested in any varieties.
Thank you,
Brock Waters
801-215-9173
brock.waters@gmail.com