I was out pruning some of my trees this morning. I’d long since given up on any peaches or nects this year because the winter wiped out almost every flower. However I’m extremely surprised to find a TangO’s 2 with a full set of pink flower buds. Out of at least 40 varieties it is the only tree on my property with more than 3 or 4 flowers and it looks completely unaffected by Feb’s extreme freeze. It is in a hole with a BuenO’s without so much as a single viable flower bud.
Who knows what this means, but it certainly suggests that this one may be tougher against winter cold that the other types I have here, which include the likes of Red Haven and Madison- known to be relatively hardy. I also have a couple of the hardy Paul Friday varieties.
Too bad I’m not a big fan of TangO’s 2 peaches and it is an oversight I didn’t cut this tree down. If I end up with a harvest from it they will be savored this year.
The system is broken and wouldn’t let me add the following
Too bad I’m not a big fan of TangO’s 2 peaches and it is an oversight I didn’t cut this tree down. If I end up with a harvest from it they will be savored this year, however.
Even if it is tougher it may be 60 years before there is another winter where it makes a difference. It depends how much colder it could take it because I’m sure that it just barely got cold enough to kill the flower buds of other trees based on trees at very slightly better sites with normal flower set.
These things are very difficult to clearly evaluate from anecdotal observations.
That may be very useful information Alan. I grow reliance peaches not because of their flavor but because they do well in Kansas most years which has not been my experience at my location with most peaches. My yum yum nectarine is not a go getter but it’s alive and it’s blooms are ok and it’s the only one I have had much luck with. Any other good stone fruit suggestions Alan? Technically we have been reclassified as zone 6 but some years my thermometer still says we are zone 5B. I grow contender and flat wonderful peaches as well.
Exact same thing here thus the way I describe my zone.
I have seen flowers bloom, but were still damaged and didn’t set, keep us updated if this happens Alan.
If they set, the tree would be useful for breeding.
I will wait and see about plums and how these peaches do going forward. The reason I jumped the gun on this one is that at the very least its flowers look healthy and all the other peaches have flowers that never came to life at all. It seems amazing that a tree not known for particular cold hardiness would have done so much better than all the other varieties I have here.
In the 15 years I managed Reliance it never had fruit when the others failed- but maybe this would have been the year.
Thank you for sharing this experience… Could it be possible that your TangOs were in a shadier area ? Could they be in a “micro-climate” part of your property?
No, they are in my experimental orchard area and are surrounded by many other varieties planted fairly tightly. As I wrote, in the same hole I planted a BuenO’s peach out of the same breeding program and it hasn’t a living flower bud on it. There is a graft of another variety on the Tango 2 (oh yeah- that’s why I didn’t cut it down) which has no flowers either.
All these trees are healthy and vigorous in the area.
I got some data in the opposite direction recently - my “double flower” peaches (ones with a certain mutant flower gene to make these flowers with double the petals, e.g. Red Baron) seem to be very frost sensitive. I have two and it looks like all the flowers are toast on them. All the other peaches look OK now. Probably not as of next morning though as I have the biggest frost event tonight.
The climate here is different. Not only is this year a year w/ some varieties w/ full crops (at this point in time) but there have been several other years like this.
The Missouri extension literature says for peach in central Missouri (away from the River) out of 10 years, expect three years of no crops, 3 years of partial crops, and 4 years of full crops.
I talked w/ a friend the other night, who has been growing peaches commercially since 03 or 04 and he said he’s had some crop every year except 07. He said there have been some very lean years (like 30 bu./ac) but something every year for the last 12 or so years. I’ve only been selling peaches for about 1/2 that long, but that’s been my experience pretty much (other than a hail storm event). So for here, I think peach varieties which give a partial crop (either because of winter hardiness, or more importantly spring frost resistance) is information of value. Thanks for posting it.
There’s very little information out there about relative hardiness w/ all the new peach varieties, even less about tolerance to late frosts. I think most locations are like yours where it’s either “all or nothing” most years.
I have a couple TangOs II trees. They performed well in the spring frosts this year when blooms were open.
In a previous year you indicated growers in your area had good winter hardiness w/ TangOs (referring to the TangOs I, not the TangOs II). Have you seen anything on TangOs this year?
In terms of taste TangOs II most customers really liked it last year (along w/ Saturn). But like you, I’m generally not as fond of high sugar white peaches.
Supposedly TangOs II is hard to grow (according to Adams) but I’ve had much more grower problems w/ TangOs I.
I agree on all your assessments of Tang0’s 2- it is a good white and easier to grow than TangO’s I- gorgeous peaches without the spots.
I actually have a TangO’s 1 in my nursery with flower buds but it is on the highest spot on my steep land and it’s the only other peach with flower buds. Other TangO’s, including 2 fully mature ones in my orchard are not holding any flower buds- including one 10 ft away from the loaded TangO’s 2. .
Galaxy’s is a bigger version of Saturn and similar in taste and sweetness. My TangOs is full with flowers this year and I am not sure how TangOs 2 compare to Saturn and Galaxy. Amadio got some mature Galaxies and hope he tune in.
Ok… I skipped ordering it…i’ll wait a few years before I jump in. I have Galaxy now, but probably won’t get fruit for a year or 2. I just wanted it because the fruit are huge.
(I can never remember which is which Tang-O 1 vs 2) But since I posted, I’ll edit to ask. Do you still like Tango1 or no? You had a good first impression.
I love its flavor if you thin as aggressively as you would a larger peach. I’d probably hate it if I was a commercial grower- besides the fact that they are easy to sell if you can manage to grow presentable fruit.
That’s interesting that you both find them so similar to Saturn. I only had one batch of TangO II from the farmer’s market, but I really liked them. They had a much stronger flavor than the Saturns, which have a lighter perfumed taste. Saturn is OK, but nothing special, at least as sold around here.
Here is the thread where TangO II was discussed last summer. I suppose that part of the difference could be that the TangO II’s that I sampled last year were their “seconds”, which increase the chances that it will be sweet, juicy, and damaged. I’m fine with that trade-off, especially since the guy either gave them to me or sold them for a trivial amount (I don’t remember which, but it was good).