Every garden deserves a peach tree

Peaches and grapes are making a comeback in gardens as more and more gardeners want to grow something easy that can also add to the food basket.

Peaches do well in our area and even in a small garden. They don’t mind being kept small and still provide fruit. Grapes are ideal to plant over an arch in the vegetable garden or up the patio pillar to add a touch of Tuscany of the Cape to your entertainment area.

Every garden can have a peach tree

Peaches are one of the easiest fruit trees to grow. For many years it was a stalwart of any old Transvaal garden and then they fell out of fashion as trends changed. Now it’s the right thing to grow especially if you are worried about what chemicals your family are eating from store bought produce. Peaches usually come to harvest from December through to the end of summer and once mature can produce up to 30kg of fruit, depending on what size you allow it to grow to.

Did you know that peach trees have fruit producing lives of 12 years?

Peaches are divided into freestone and cling-stone cultivars. Freestone peaches are best for eating fresh out of hand. Cling-stone peaches are a good choice for cooking and homemade jam.

You need to plan where you want to plant a peach tree. If you want it to be a larger tree you need to give it at least a two to three meter open space. If you are in a small garden, consider growing it against a wall as an espalier, or where you will use it as the tree in the garden. They need sun to ripen fruit so a spot that gets the most sun in your garden is best. With a bit of shade its not a problem but your harvest goes down as they get more shade.

The one very important thing is drainage. Poor drainage will kill the root system of peach trees, so make sure the position selected does drain well. Peaches are self pollinating mostly, so you only need one to get a great harvest. In winter they need to be pruned to shape and fed with BioOcean to stimulate flowering and good growth in the coming summer. They are water-wise, so perfect for the modern garden. Choose one of South Africa’s most popular varieties, Oom Sarel or Kakamas. They are Heirloom varieties, both yellow peaches and known for producing a great crop.

Plant a grape vine

Wine grapes grow famously in the Cape wine lands and even along the Orange River, all dry places with rocky soil and little rainfall. But they will grow well in our local area where they just need something to cling to and grow around. A few things to consider and soon you will have a very rewarding and worthwhile addition to any style of garden. Find a spot where there is good air circulation around the vine. They prefer a loose soil with good drainage and as much sun as possible.

Believe it or not it’s almost impossible to kill a grape vine. In the first year let them just grow wild and then at pruning the second year you guide and shape them into the structure that you want. They don’t want too much food and even need little in the line of mulch. Catawba is a popular red variety that is exceptionally vigorous. The Catawba Grape has a very sweet taste that makes it ideal to serve fresh on the table of for adding to your smoothie.

 Information provided by Eckards Garden Pavilion.