I was given a tree and the owner told me it was a native peach. It's a small peach and several people around have them. I'm not finding much info on line.
Thanks
native peach tree?
It may be from the cultivar used in Stonewall, TX. They are a smaller type and are very sweet.
There is only 1 "wild peach" listed in TAMU's native trees of Texas and it is not really a peach. It is a cherry laurel, Prunus caroliniana , whose fruit contains large amounts of hydrocyanic acid and are poisonous.
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/ornamentals/natives/prunuscaroliniana.htm
Do you have any photos of the tree, bark, some branches with leaves, blooms and ripe fruit? That would help ti ID your tree.
I know it's not poisonous. The three he gave me are 2-3' tall growing fast.. He was bragging about his being the true native and was better than the others around. There is "one of the others" up the street I can get a picture of tomorrow. The neighbor across the street doesn't think much of them.
Thanks
Stonewall peaches.....YUMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!!
Thanks for reminding me. Been busy, I'll try today.
Later
stephanietx - One day DH and I will make it to Stonewall for the Peach Festival. I mark my calendar every spring for the harvest so I can get to HEB ASAP. lol!
Got the pictures today.
Bark
I'm wondering if this tree might be invasive as these starts he got were popping up in the yard. He kept them mowed but I wonder how far the roots will travel.
Habitat
Thanks
This message was edited Oct 28, 2010 5:37 PM
It definitely looks like a peach tree. As for being a native, I think the gentleman was using the word "native" incorrectly. Maybe he meant to say "volunteer" seedling, when the fruit tree grows from a discarded peach seed and in that case, it would be impossible to ID because peaches don't come true from seed.
While it is still small, I would move it to another location if this is your tree. It is growing way too close to the foundation. Almost a full quarter of the roots are growing under the foundation and over time could do some foundation damage. Watering it would also become a problem especially if the soil has a high clay content. Clay, depending on its content in the soil can expand quite a bit. We are having a house built and had to have a soils analysis. My DH had to choose the only spot on the ranch with heavy red clay. The report stated that clay can expand and contract up to 3" every 30'. So the recommendations we got were that we not plant anything within 5' of the foundation.
Many members of the Prunus family have shallow roots that tend to send up new sprouts where ever the roots come close to the surface. Not invasive, just annoying. There is a product on the market that can stop this annoying habit without harming the rest of the tree. I just can't remember what it is called.
Thank you for the info. This was not my tree. Mine are well away from any foundation. I get nervous anytime a tree comes close to the house. They probably did it for the protection from wind and frost. There was one up the street and it froze last year or something as it's not there now.
I've seen several of these trees around Harlingen and I got mine from Rio Hondo. They all look the same and they all have the same small fruit, but I know that doesn't make them the same.
Thanks again
Dane
Possibly the fruit are small because they aren't being attended to. Someone with a commercial orchard as a business will be very attentive to watering and fertilizing. Sometime homeowners and public officials take the approach that the tree is surviving on its own and so doesn't need anything.
I had a Peach seedling pop up in April of last year. That seedling has grown over 13 feet in 18 months. The trunk is already about half dollar sized. I hope it gives good fruit because I would name it as a new cultivar. If not, maybe I will use cuttings as a rootstock.
Came back from Az last week, in time for the last picking and I got a couple dozen peaches. They are small but full of flavor.
People have been calling them Valley Peaches but still haven't found any info for them. Seems to be enough people know about them that they would be regestered.
Thanks
I live in Harlingen, and what we called 'the valley peach' was an Early Grand peach tree. We no longer live in the house where that tree is but it was a large tree and produced more peaches than we could give away! They were soooo good. Grimsells in downtown Harlingen may sell them.
They were not as small as the fruit in that picture but it produced tons of yellow fleshed medium-large sized peaches.
I have personally never seen small red fleshed peaches like that before so I guess I can't be much help here.