As far as I'm concerned, there are only two types of Peach trees. The one's you buy, and the one's you don't.
Of course there are actually hundreds of different types of Peach, from orange fleshed, to white, to blood coloured. There are flat ones, and round ones. There are furry ones, and there are smooth.
The Peche de Vigne is usually grown from the pip of a good variety. Sometimes they resemble the mother plant, but more than often they don't. In many ways this doesn't really matter as the fruits are good anyway.
The trees were traditionally grown at the end of each row of vines, rather like certain Roses, to predict the onslaught of disease. If spots appeared on the leaves of the Peach trees, it was a warning for the growers to take immediate action. The fruit usually matures at the same time as the vendange so the pickers also had ready made snacks at the end of each row.
I only have one pukka grafted Peach tree; all my others are what I would call Peche de Vigne. It's always a toss-up with Peaches; one year they are loaded, the following year, nothing. They are very susceptible to weather conditions. This year our main Peche de Vigne (above) has plenty of fruit, and they are just beginning to ripen. Wonderful.
Our pukka grafted tree (Boo Boo's tree) also performed very well this year. We've been lucky.
Our peach tree is self sown and, so far, has produced every year. Fingers crossed that it continues to. I have some, from the freezer on my morning porridge.
ReplyDeleteOurs are looking excellent this year, but I have noticed that several are rotting in situ.
DeleteWe have a very good fruit and veg man on our Friday market. In season he has a huge pile of peaches and the same of nectarines on his stand and you just help yoursdelf and buy in multiples of five. I can no longer get down to the market - how I miss them.
ReplyDeleteI do have one Nectarine tree, but it's become rather swamped. I must explore.
DeleteWhen I came to live here forty years or more ago there were a lot of peach groves here in the nearby valley, today not a single tree remains. Instead there are almond trees.
ReplyDeleteStart planting pips; they'll grow. Is there more money in Almonds? I do know that Almond Milk is very popular with vegans, etc.
DeleteI once lived in a house which had the most wonderful peach tree in the backyard. An old-fashioned variety called Golden Queen, with fruits as big as softballs, sweet and so juicy you could bite in and have juice running over your chin and down your arm. The tree grew dozens of peaches every summer.
ReplyDeleteThat's just how I love to eat them; warm from the tree and juice running everywhere. Our pukka grafted tree has nice big juicy fruits, the one above is slightly smaller, and although very tasty, it's not as juicy.
DeleteRiver I saw Golden Queen for sale at the roadside near Blenheim NZ last time we were there..they sold out fast!
DeleteI'm in Australia and now in a one bedroom flat, no room for a peach tree. If I ever have a place with a fenced yard again I will order a Golden Queen online from somewhere.
DeleteWe haven't eaten a decent peach yet this year. They all seem to sold hard and tasteless. I'm going looking for some today. If I have to I simmer them. Great for breakfast.
ReplyDeleteI envy your juice dripping the chin enjoyment
I hate buying fruit that isn't ripe. I once bought a bag of Avocados that proved to be unripe, and they simply refused to ripen. I ended-up throwing them all away.
DeleteI look foward to the season of Bartlett pairs . . . I eat them by the bushel full.
ReplyDelete