How to Plant Peach Trees in Texas
Peaches do very well in Texas. In fact, Texas has a thriving commercial peach industry. Whether or not peaches will thrive in your backyard depends on your soil quality, adequate winter "chilling," and how well you protect your trees from spring frost. It also depends on the peach variety you plant, because not all peaches will do well in all seven Texas "growing zones" for peaches and other stone fruit. Specialty nurseries and local master gardeners can provide reliable guidance. Does this Spark an idea?
Things You'll Need
- Compost
- Well-rotted horse or steer manure and other organic matter (optional)
- Garden shovel
- Garden gloves
- Peach tree well suited to your area (3 to 4 feet tall, bare root), grafted to Nemaguard rootstock
- Soak bucket
- Bypass hand pruners
Instructions
-
-
1
Choose a planting site with sandy, well-drained loam that's also sunny. Morning sun is ideal for drying dew and preventing moisture related diseases. Select a spot well protected against spring frosts, such as adjacent to a south-facing wall. Add compost or other organic matter and cultivate deeply, blending soil and all amendments to a depth of at least 12 inches.
-
2
Open the bare root package immediately. Make sure all packing material is still moist, which means the chances are good that the tree roots have not dried out. If the roots look good, gently spread them out and inspect them further for damage; prune away any dead or damaged roots. "Heel in" or cover roots in a shallow trench, cover with soil and moisten thoroughly if you can't plant it immediately. Otherwise soak roots for no more than one hour to make sure they are fully hydrated.
-
-
3
Plant your peach tree in winter--before March 1--to allow roots to develop before the tree leafs out in spring. With your shovel, dig a planting hole large enough for the tree's root system but no larger than needed. Set the tree at approximately the same depth as it grew in the nursery, judging from soil and moisture stains on the stem--making sure the root graft is 1 or 2 inches aboveground--atop a small mound of soil in the hole to support the roots. Fill the hole with soil and firm it around the roots. Water the tree, thoroughly saturating the roots.
-
4
Prune the dormant tree, following the "open center" pruning system, which maximizes interior light penetration to the benefit of fruit as well as vegetation. Immediately after planting, cut off the top of the tree about 2 feet above ground and remove all side branches. In subsequent years you'll continue the pruning process, directing new tree growth into a strong scaffold branch structure.
-
1
Tips & Warnings
Water is essential for growing healthy trees and large fruit. Normally trees require water at least every three weeks, but in Texas summer heat they'll need a deep soaking at least weekly.
Do not fertilize a newly planted peach tree until after new spring growth emerges.
Do not over-water, which can damage or drown trees.
