Most often, peach trees are found in the southern regions: it is these conditions that are required for a plant for full development. Most of the varieties are zoned in the regions of the North Caucasus, peaches also grow in the Crimea and Krasnodar Territory, but often plantings of thermophilic fruit trees are found in other areas with colder climates. Despite the harsh conditions, peaches can also produce a good harvest there.
In order not to accidentally be left without tasty fruits, peach seedlings of different ages are usually kept in the school. This solution allows you to quickly get a replacement in case the mature tree disappears. Peach can be grown from seed. This method of reproduction does not always guarantee the complete transfer of varietal characteristics, but trees obtained from the stone are considered more resistant to temperature extremes. That is why in regions unusual for peach, they are often grown in this way. Planting a seed also attracts with its benefits (high-quality seedlings can cost a lot) and provides the gardener with the opportunity to experiment.
Choosing a peach variety for seed planting
In the northeastern and northern regions, peach trees do not live long - only about 10 years. Landings are significantly weakened by frosts and winds, as well as return frosts. This makes them more vulnerable to diseases and pests than plants from warm edges. For successful cultivation of peaches, it is recommended to choose a well-proven cultivar. The seeds can be taken from fruits from your own plot or from purchased fruits. In this case, you should ask the seller about the type of peach you bought.
As many seeds as possible should be left on the seeds - their germination rate is not too high and is only about 25%. In this case, the best results are obtained from seeds taken from local plants. Peaches and nectarines brought from far away are picked unripe for transportation, so their seeds sprout less often, and the plants obtained from them are considered more capricious and demanding. In addition, the germination rate of seeds varies, so some may not sprout in a few weeks, but only a few years after planting. On average, peaches begin to bear fruit 3-4 years after sprouting.
Among the most popular and common varieties:
- The velvet season is a winter-hardy variety that ripens closer to August.
- Pomegranate is an especially early variety with sweet and sour fruits.
- Decent is another early variety with medium-sized fruits.
- Golden Jubilee is an American moderately cold-hardy variety with good immunity.
- Crimean autumn is a fruitful and winter-hardy late peach with slightly oval fruits.
- The Crimean masterpiece is an early variety with moderate drought resistance.
- Refreshing - fairly tall trees with tasty fruits, characterized by resistance to drought and disease.
- Memory Simirenko is a large-fruited winter-hardy variety with aromatic fruits.
- Early fluffy - a variety with medium-sized, highly pubescent fruits.
- Stavropol pink is a moderately disease-resistant variety that ripens by the end of August.
- Redhaven is a hardy American cultivar with tasty large fruits.
- Favorite Morettini is an Italian hybrid with medium-sized fruits ripening early.
Any varieties of peaches grown in an unusual region for them will need good shelter for the winter. The root area is covered with foliage, needles, spruce branches or several layers of non-woven covering material. The trunk and branches of the plant are wrapped in spunbond. In the spring, the shelter is removed, trying not to damage the awakening kidneys. During the flowering period, peaches often shed the ovary during the period of return frosts. In order to successfully survive the unfavorable planting time, fires are kindled near the trees in the morning. Warm smoke enveloping the branches will protect them from the cold. But such actions require strict adherence to fire safety measures.
Preparing peach pits for sowing
The peach left on the seeds is not eaten for as long as possible, allowing it to fully ripen. The most ripe fruit is considered to be soft, often with cracked skin. Seeds can be harvested even from rotten peaches, but the seed itself should not be damaged. They are removed from the fruit, washed and dried in a ventilated place. If such seeds are sown in the same summer, they are put in a bag and kept in the vegetable compartment of the refrigerator for at least a week for stratification. The brief coolness helps to activate the growth of the seeds, and they will germinate better. The seeds planted in the fall can be stratified in natural conditions. The garden bed with them is mulched for the winter, having previously marked the planting site, and in the spring they expect sprouts.
Although peach pits appear to be very hard, they open quickly in a humid environment. Fruits eaten in June can be tried to germinate during the summer season. To speed up the process, the seed is opened and the seeds are soaked in warm water for a couple of days, replacing it every 3-4 hours. After this treatment, the seeds can be planted.
If they do not have time to plant peaches this year, the period of artificial stratification may be longer. The bones are placed in a container filled with wet sand. They should be deepened by about 3-4 cm. From above, the container is covered with a film and kept in the refrigerator or cellar for about 2.5 months, checking that the sand does not dry out. During this period, the bones should hatch. With the appearance of sprouts, they are transplanted into a pot with drainage holes. For several days, the seedlings are kept in a bright, but cool (about 10 degrees) place, and then transferred to heat (about 20 degrees). Water the planting as needed.
Features of planting peach seeds
Peach seeds obtained from the pits can be sown directly on the garden bed or germinated at home, in a pot. The seed can be previously extracted from the seed or planted in the ground as a whole.
Sowing in open ground
Seeds sown closer to the beginning of July should sprout by the end of summer. During the fall, they must prepare for the coming cold weather. Whatever shelter the seedlings protect, only plants with a sufficiently strong brownish bark can survive the winter. In order for the peaches to move into this stage, they try to slow down their growth. To do this, planting ceases to water and feed, and also pinch their tops.
Sowing results from late summer or early fall will not be visible until next spring. Seeds will naturally stratify during the winter.
In both cases, a well-lit area with fertile and drained soil is selected for the peach. Nutrients are additionally added to the soil: compost and complex mineral composition (one third of a glass of fertilizer mixture per 1 sq. M). Before planting, the soil is well dug to the depth of the shovel bayonet.The seeds are planted in 1-2 rows to a depth of 6-8 cm, keeping a distance of about 15 cm between them. Such a bed is called a school.
Sowing in a pot at home
To ensure that young plants do not die from frost, it is recommended to start growing them not in the garden, but at home. The seedlings obtained in this way are transferred to the ground next spring, and they will be able to give fruits already in the 3rd year of development.
For home cultivation of a peach, a pot of 1.5 to 2 liters of volume is required. There should be holes at the bottom. Drainage is laid in the pot, and a mixture of garden soil, peat and sand is used as a substrate. On one 2-liter pot, you can plant 3 seeds each, deepening them at least 6-8 cm. You can first remove the seeds by carefully splitting the seed, and then soaking the seed in warm water for 1-3 days. The swollen nucleoli are planted, then the plantings are watered, covered with glass or film and placed in a warm place. It takes up to 4 weeks for seeds to germinate. During this period, you need to monitor the moisture content of the soil and regularly ventilate it. With the emergence of seedlings, the shelter is removed.
Peach care at home and outdoors
Homemade peaches will need optimal growth conditions. They need good lighting: a pot with plantings is placed in the brightest corner. If there is not enough sun, lamps can be used. In summer, seedlings need warmth (about 25 degrees), in winter - moderate coolness (about 16-18 degrees). During the cool content, watering is carried out about a couple of times a month, while in the summer the peach is watered about 2 times a week. The soil in the pot should not dry out completely. The top layer of the soil is periodically loosened.
You should not keep the peach in the container for longer than the season. As the seedlings grow, they begin to press against each other, and the soil in the pot is depleted. In the spring of next year, these peaches are transplanted into the garden. Houseplants are considered more sensitive to changing weather conditions, so they are looked after carefully.
Trees growing in open ground will need to be watered periodically, weed, loosen the soil in the trunk circle, and also mulch it. The irrigation schedule changes during the warm season. In June, watering can be carried out about once every couple of weeks, in July - once a month, and by the end of summer, stop altogether so that the plants get stronger before winter. The plants are transferred to a permanent place next spring. Peach needs especially careful care in the first 2 years of life.
Planting a peach in a permanent place
In the garden, the peach should grow in a warm and sunny place, sheltered from strong winds and not subject to stagnation of moisture in the soil. The distance from the tree to other large plantings should be about 3 m. The same distance is maintained from the buildings shading the tree.
For planting a seedling, prepare a pit 50-60 cm deep and about half a meter wide. About 15-20 cm of drainage is laid at the bottom of the pit, and then a mixture of garden soil with humus or compost and mineral fertilizers is poured. The seedling is placed in a hole, its roots are straightened, covered with soil mixture and tamped properly. When the hole is about 2/3 full, good watering should be done, and after the water is absorbed, the rest of the soil is poured into it.
What to do to make a peach bear fruit every year
In order for a peach tree to be able to produce an annual harvest, it is necessary to fulfill the basic conditions for caring for it:
- Creation of reliable protection against frost;
- Timely prevention of the spread of diseases and pests;
- Protection against return frost during the flowering period;
- Ensuring the formation of fruit wood.
Peach, like all stone fruits, forms flower buds on annual shoots. Peach fruit buds coexist with leaf buds. As a rule, on such shoots of three buds, two will be floral and one leaf. False fruit shoots have only a growth bud, and all the rest will be flowering.In order for the tree to form more fruitful shoots, it must be properly shaped. Even from the moment of planting, the main shoot is shortened to a highly developed bud. In the future, if you wish, you can turn the plant into a bush or tree.
Bush formation involves pinching all the upper shoots. Three branches are left below, growing at different heights. The skeleton of the bush will be formed from them. At the same time, the stem can be low (10-15 cm) or high (about 30 cm), but sometimes the formation begins from the ground level. As the branches develop, they are shortened, activating the growth of lateral shoots, which can also bear fruit. Growing a peach tree as a bush makes it easier to hide it for the winter. If the peach is grown as a tree, skeletal branches are formed about 60 cm from the ground. Further principles of formation are practically the same.
Most peach varieties are self-pollinating, but many of them bear fruit more abundantly in the presence of neighboring trees.
