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| Hi everyone, We moved into a new home in NH last Oct. The landlord casually mentioned that there is a peach tree, 2 apple trees, a cherry tree, 2 pear trees and some grape vines around the yard. We know nothing about gardening fruit or otherwise. As of right now the cherry tree had some cherries earlier in the summer but I think animals got them all. The pears are very small and hard but have the coloration of pears you would find in a produce section. The apple trees didn't bear any fruit. The peaches are small hard and green and the grapes are the right size, green but very hard. It's already beginning to get colder up here and I've written off any fruit for this year, but what can I do for next year so I can enjoy some fruit. I appreciate any help you can offer. Thanks, Dave |
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| D...if you could locate a friend who is knowledgeable...I would invite him over for lunch. An educated eye can tell most during the growing season. Apple and pear trees are long-lived trees. With care....you probably can rescue them after neglect. Peach trees are subject to many diseases and are short-lived trees. The sizes and bark can often hint the ages of trees. goodluck |
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| D...if you could locate a friend who is knowledgeable...I would invite him over for lunch. An educated eye can tell most during the growing season. Apple and pear trees are long-lived trees. With care....you probably can rescue them after neglect. Peach trees are subject to many diseases and are short-lived trees. The sizes and bark can often hint the ages of trees. goodluck |
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| What you are asking is a lot like asking for help in understanding women. Fortunately I am expert at both. :) You need to bookmark this page and read it every day or two. here are the subjects you need to learn about: Pruning, disease control, pest control, dealing with the fruit itself. growing fruit is an awesome little hobby, and this is coming from a guy that would rather have cement then grass in the yard. Pruning gets tricky in that there are lots of pruning guides around the web, but they are just regurgitated conventional wisdom minus the really important details. You should read on this or any other good forums starting now and look at your trees frequently and only mentally prune them, you will get the hang of it by the time late winter comes around and you can do a good prune job. You need to be able to look at the tree and know why you are doing each cut and what the result will be. Of course this is if you want to maximize them. they will grow and put off some fruit with no attention. Don't fertilize with commercial product unless you determine it is needed. I read more about trees being burned by fertilizer then ones that need it. Although some people live where the soil sucks and fert is a must. otherwise stick around here and read and ask stuff |
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| Peach - I'd say your peach could be peach grown from rootstocks if fruit still small and hard at this time of the year. Most peaches are ripe or on they way to, by now. Read up on grafting peach. You may need to to graft new peach variety on that one. Peach has many issues. Pear - Pear can be small. Wait until late Sept to see if it sizes up or going to ripe at all. Pear is easier to grow. Apple - since you don't know how old the trees are and what rootstock they are on, it's tough to know when they will fruit or if they will fruit (if no cross pollination). Wait till next spring, they may flower for you. Growing apple in New England is not that difficult. Cherry - I don't know if you have sour or sweet cherry tree. Sour cherry is easier to grow. It has fewer problems than sweet one. If it's sour cherry, birds could be your only issue. Don't know anything about grapes but see them growing wild all over the place. Like cckw said, read up. This forum has a lot of good contributors. Go to Search at the top of the page and search specific info you want to know. Most issues have been discussed and answered (many times). I don't know where you are in NH, I have a friend in Hampstead, NH. He knows nothing about growing fruit trees but planted apple, peach, cherry in his front yard anyway. He does not have any problem and no spray at all. His worry is squirrels and birds. Make me want to move to NH!!! |
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