Shop Products
Houzz Logo Print
iris321_gw

Peach Tree for Iowa

iris321
17 years ago

What would be a good variety of peach to plant here? .I know they can be successfully grown,just wondered what variety. Doris

Comments (24)

  • prairiegal

    I've had good luck with 'Reliance' up here in the NW corner of the state. I just planted mine two years ago, and they've made it through two winters without even bud loss. AND they gave me a few peaches their very first summer!

  • prairiegal

    I've had good luck with 'Reliance' up here in the NW corner of the state. I just planted mine two years ago, and they've made it through two winters without even bud loss. AND they gave me a few peaches their very first summer!

  • prairiegal

    I've had good luck with 'Reliance' up here in the NW corner of the state. I just planted mine two years ago, and they've made it through two winters without even bud loss. AND they gave me a few peaches their very first summer!

  • my_secret_garden
    17 years ago

    Would like to know this myself!

  • bbriggs
    17 years ago

    I've tried a few over the years: Reliance is moderately reliable and moderately good quality. Equally hardy, reliable, and higher in quality is Belle of Georgia (a white peach). Either should be very quick to bear, but expect a crop loss from either perhaps 1 out of 3 years. My personal sentiment is plant Belle of Georgia if you have room for only one. My sentiment is also to plant standard size, get those buds up above the really cold air. Dwf or Std will both be quick to bear. They won't take forever to die either, but I think Std will last a little longer. I've squeezed out 12 years on a reliance tree here, it's getting pretty long in the teeth. It will be my last Reliance.

  • sfallen2002
    14 years ago

    Hm.. I've had lousy luck with apricots. Only fruit was when I bought 'em before they were planted. No fruit since, they keep getting frosted out. Moonglow and sunglow.

    Last year I think they got terminated by the wet weather/heavy soil combo.

    Maybe time to re-think the small fruits and go with peaches. I've heard they are tough to grow because of pest pressure - is that true..?

  • goathollowprep
    14 years ago

    I've had good luck with the little "Missouri peaches" they seem to be a native here in southern Iowa, bear really small, but tasty peaches, and very hardy.

  • mikkle
    14 years ago

    Where do you find Missouri peaches?

  • iowgardenangel
    13 years ago

    reliance and belle are both good. I agree standard or semi standard seem to do better that dwarf

  • Omegaclass
    10 years ago

    I tried to grow some of your seeds but none grew so far. seems something went wrong on my part. so i was wondering if you will sell bare root trees? i would love to grow one of those peaches.

  • mark_roeder 4B NE Iowa
    10 years ago

    Hi,

    I am on my second Reliance. The 1st one was diseased and I cut it out. It was diseased the day it arrived, oozing stuff out of the trunk.

    My second Reliance has been very productive, but last year the late frost froze most flower buds, and those not frozen produce fruit that was eaten by a massive infestation of Japanese Beetles.

    I also have a 3rd year Contender and it has several fruit set in 2013, but not nearly as heavy a set as my 5th year Reliance. The following is photo(s) are from 2011 of Reliance.

    In all my gardening this year I have only turned up two Japanese Beetle grubs, so I think the drought killed them off, and I am expecting a good crop of peaches this year.

    I have purchased fresh peaches at Alabama fruit stands, and a fresh NE Iowa Reliance is very nearly as good as any fresh peach sold in Alabama, where, in my opinion the best peaches in the U.S. are grown.

  • mark_roeder 4B NE Iowa
    10 years ago

    Reliance

  • iowagirl_2010
    10 years ago

    The Reliance peach is just loaded this year. I took the ladder out and pulled out half of the peaches so give the tree and chance to get decent size peaches.

  • Ivywild142
    10 years ago

    Reliance was good for me in Iowa. Polly was a reliable white one I grew that had decent flavor. I think Contender and Risingstar are better, along with PF24C.

  • lkz5ia
    10 years ago

    This year was a good iowa peach year, over 1100 pounds for me

  • oldlady59
    10 years ago

    Wow Now I've found a subject I can really get talking about. I started with a Reliance about 20 years ago. It produced good for me. Then I got a Red Heaven. Which is what this pic of the peach is. But it is a fairly mature tree and I do prune the tree every Febr. and thin the fruit when it about the size of a grape. That is why it is such a nice size of a peach. Before the Reliance died I saved the seeds and from the Red Heaven also. So for the last 11 years I've had fruit from the 9 out of 50 trees that grew from those seeds. The other 41 trees I sold at 2 years old seedlings. The State Horticulturist told me when a seed is planted from a grafted tree the fruit will not be the same but hay I'm really pleased with what I've been getting. I think (and correct me if I'm wrong) that the reliance is Not a grafted tree but the Red Heaven is. I put up bird houses in each tree so I don't have to spray for bugs. I've had to share with either coon or possums, but I still was able to put up over 100 pints of peaches last summer.

  • oldlady59
    10 years ago

    Have you seen on your fruit trees in spring the trunk split and wondered , What the heck happened. The State horticulturist had told me that the trunks do not need protected from the winter cold. To that I say bull!!.. That winter sun on the dark trunk is able to draw some sap up into the truck at the cambium layer. Then when the freezing night come that sap freezes,and splits. I wrap the trunks of mine up to the first branch. and take it off every spring and they look great. I used to paint it with latex paint diluted. Which would last about three years, but I have forgot what the portion of each are anymore so I just wrap them. If anyone knows the portion of water to paint for painting the trunks I'd like to know.

  • lee_in_iowa
    10 years ago

    My Reliance froze out 7 or 8 years ago, and I replaced with a Gurney's Contender. VERY HAPPY with it! It bore about a peck of fruit the second summer and was COVERED this summer, in its third year. Highly recommend for Des Moines area. The fruit was juicy and sweet and just the BEST.

  • jjstatz
    10 years ago

    I have an orchard with about 10 Redhaven - freestone trees... Best tasting peach, ever. Does well here in SW Iowa. Weird winters have caused it to be acting a bit like a biennial bearing.

    I cover my trees in winter - trunk and half the primary scaffolds with a mix of fresh manure, clay, neem oil, white latex paint, and water - I just brush it on thick in fall. Keeps the rabbits off and insulates/reflects as well and keeps the borers OUT and OFF in spring.

    loaded tree

    Before Harvest (after removing half of nickel sized fruit, photo taken when nearly ripe full size fruit)

    After Harvest:

    Fruit:

    I just can't get over how well this tree performs with minimal inputs and the flavor and size are impeccable.

  • jjstatz
    10 years ago

    I forgot to say... I don't even like peaches normally, but the Redhaven fruit converted (for better or for worse)

  • Imhappy&Iknowit IOWA zone 4b
    9 years ago

    I've had Reliance and Contender. Both produced and both died in their 2nd or 3rd bearing year. I now have whatever grew from seeds from grocery store peaches or from my own peaches. I planted every seed from every peach. Several grew, two are now bearing age. I do have a few that I planted two summers ago that survived the winter and I'm hoping I can keep them alive for a couple of years. I expect the two that bore last year to die within the next 2 years. Peaches don't seem to live very long in north Iowa so I keep planting them every year.

  • oldlady59
    9 years ago

    HI, lov_mkitchen, A few things I want to mention to you. First peaches can live a long time I have peach trees over 10 years old. I live in Iowa in zone 5 but it's pretty close to zone 4. Second is a question is your peaches growing in a low area. The roots can not stand to be wet a lot of the time. They will rot. Thirdly I do believe that there's nothing wrong with growing a peach from seed from a peach bought at a store but if you don't know where that peach tree grew then your tree may not be hardy enough for your area. If I was you I'd try and find a peach tree growing in your area and get some seeds from it.

  • HU-120562308
    4 days ago


    ericka_catnip_farm. Are you still on here?

Sponsored
Preferred General Contracting, Inc.
Average rating: 4.7 out of 5 stars9 Reviews
Fairfax County's Specialized, Comprehensive Renovations Firm