My husband really loves harvesting peaches. Photo taken June 2, 2017
Limbs loaded with immature fruit. Photo taken May 2, 2018.
Overabundance of fruit. Good or Bad?
Stressed is a term they have used to describe what could happen if there are too many fruit. They, being the people I have accepted as the ones to trust. The ones that have so far basically been very helpful in getting me through the steps of planting and caring for my fruit trees. Their names don't matter, but it appears they were right. My two peach trees are currently going through their fourth growing season and one of them isn't all there.
About 15% of limbs still have not broken dormancy. Photo taken on May 2, 2018. (This is what the limbs usually looks like in mid February)
About 15% of limbs still have not broken dormancy. Photo taken on May 2, 2018.
About 15% of limbs still have not broken dormancy. Photo taken on May 2, 2018.
The peach tree that had the largest and most numerous fruit last year is now showing signs of stalled or slowed growth. Both trees first showed swollen buds in mid Feb and to this day, this one has about 15% of it's limbs that have not matured past that point (shown in pictures above). There were fewer flowers this year on both and this tree is now quite misshapen.
Misshapen peach tree. Uneven growth. Photo taken May 2, 2018.
Lessons learned
Last year required a few sturdy supports just to keep the branches from snapping off. You can see how loaded the peach tress were last year in the photos below. I knew there were way too many fruit, but I could not get myself to thin them out. All of the "fruit tree" people I trusted had explained and usually demonstrated when and how to do it. But my brain would not allow my hand to do so. I picked a few off, but now understand just how important it is to substantially thin the fruit. So far this season, I have thinned and filled eight large coffee cans full of them. As seen in the photo, we had a lot of peaches from two small three year old trees last year. I hope it didn't do too much, if any, damage that could stunt or slow growth. At this point, all I know is I had a heck of a lot of peaches last year and now I have a warped tree with a few limbs that seem to not be getting the signal to wake up. The peaches on both look healthy and leaves show no signs of stress.
Peach trees loaded with way too many fruits. I did not thin the fruits in 2017. What a mistake!
Last year required a few sturdy supports just to keep the branches from snapping off. The fruit load was so heavy, it altered the shape of the tree permanently.
I could not get myself to thin fruit last year.
Harvested hundreds of small peaches from two three-year old peach trees in 2017.
Thinning is as important as pruning
I now understand fruit thinning is as important as pruning for the overall health of the fruit tree. It is our responsibility as fruit growers to thin fruit! An unthinned fruit tree may seem abundant & fruitful, but it is so stressful on the tree as I have observed in my own mini orchard. So far this season, I have removed approximately 50% of young peaches. Not sure if that's enough, but I continue to observe and learn from the trees. Don't make the mistake I made. Thin your fruits. It's your responsibility!
I have thinned and filled eight large coffee cans full of immature peaches so far this year.
It is our responsibility as fruit growers to thin fruit. It's for the overall health of the tree.
Have you experienced the same thing with an over abundant fruit tree? I would love to hear your experience and story.
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