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Cole_Robbie · January 5, 2017

I think there are only two varieties of peach that are not self-pollinating. One is JH Hale, which is the best peach I have ever tasted.

What I don't want is something I need to spray over and over again with pesticides and fungicides.

Then you don't want peaches. They are the most spray-intensive tree fruit I know of. You also have to thin the peaches in a good year, so they don't all come out golf-ball size. You'll get peaches year 3, but the trees are short-lived. By the time it is 8-10, you'll probably want to replace it. Oh, and every 3-4 years, there is no crop at all, due to a freeze happening after the tree blooms.

If you want a low-maintenance tree, pie cherries, pears, and Asian pear-apples are all a lot easier to grow. Even plums are easier than peaches, but you'll want to hit them with fungicide so the fruit don't get brown rot on the tree.

January 5, 2017	#9
Cole_Robbie Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: Illinois, zone 6 Posts: 8,407	I think there are only two varieties of peach that are not self-pollinating. One is JH Hale, which is the best peach I have ever tasted. What I don't want is something I need to spray over and over again with pesticides and fungicides. Then you don't want peaches. They are the most spray-intensive tree fruit I know of. You also have to thin the peaches in a good year, so they don't all come out golf-ball size. You'll get peaches year 3, but the trees are short-lived. By the time it is 8-10, you'll probably want to replace it. Oh, and every 3-4 years, there is no crop at all, due to a freeze happening after the tree blooms. If you want a low-maintenance tree, pie cherries, pears, and Asian pear-apples are all a lot easier to grow. Even plums are easier than peaches, but you'll want to hit them with fungicide so the fruit don't get brown rot on the tree.