Want Large Juicy Peaches? You HAVE to Do This One Thing!

When you describe the taste of a peach, what's the first thing that comes to mind? Juicy? Sweet? Mouth watering? One of the things that makes growing your own peaches special is the chance to pick a fully ripe peach from the tree and have an amazing tasting fruit that you can't buy from the store. However, many people wind up with small fruit that tastes ok, but it's not a "Knock your socks off" kind of experience. Today we're showing you how to thin peaches to ensure that fruit is large, sweet and out of this world amazing!
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#peaches
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[@Homegardener55]

I usually thin to about 6 inches in between fruit for peaches. I was fortunate enough to take a class in commercial fruit and vegetable production so I know all the ins and outs of growing fruit trees. Thinning is the most important step if you want large peaches

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Solid advice with that spacing. We usually get to that spacing as well by the time the fruit ripens as we go back through the trees over the next few weeks and see any additional culls that we need to take care of.

[@samuelford9384]

So here in Germany we have a historical record cold „winter“ storm. Down to 7 degree Fahrenheit on Monday with a windchill going down to -2 degree Fahrenheit. Our peaches are full in bloom outside. Second year old peach trees even didn’t lost there leaves doing to our mild winter.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hey Samuel! Oh my goodness, that is not a good thing for peaches! That's the challenge with peaches that bloom early. We had some light freezes during the bloom time here as well, but most of the flowers still survived. What variety of peaches do you grow in Germany? Do you have other fruit you're growing as well?

[@samuelford9384]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarm we grow peach veracities witch are adopted to high rainfall areas. 2 - 3m of grows per year on peach trees is here normal. We mainly grow Gooseberries, Currants, apples, pears, plums, blueberries, Figs, jujube, Pawpaw, raspberries, blackberries, grapes,… But the easiest think to grow here are sweet potatoes 😂. And we only harvesting fruits when we don’t have so much hail.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

@@samuelford9384 that is an amazing variety of fruit. Very similar to some of the Eastern US areas. It's funny, because I think of Germany and I think of short summers and very cold weather, but it's really not much different from some parts of the US.

[@Mansahx]

Can we say… peach cobbler 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Yes!! My mouth is already watering just thinking about it. Some more peach wine too!

[@sbhimji4568]

I'd love to see a video like this on picking loquat. Awesome!

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

We'll definitely have some loquat content coming up here in the next couple of months. The trees are really starting to put on fruit right now!

[@ericbowers1620]

Im glad we talked briefly a week or so about taking a look at thinning and now a video pops up about it. Great video showing why and how to do it properly and the huge difference in quality and taste if done :)

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Timing is everything right? For everyone in the city it's probably a bit late for this one, but we didn't have time to get around to it until now. Better late than never!!

[@ericbowers1620]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarm actually ours are the same size as yours…the peaches that is not the tree itself and i got one thinning done so far

[@motocowgirl04]

Perfect timing for me! Have a newly planted (3 wks ago) and it had a ton of small fruit that is surviving the transplant. Thank you!!!

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Timing is everything, right? Congrats on that new baby!!

[@kylanvanemmerik9397]

Thank you guys!! Very informative!!

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Glad you enjoyed this one Kylan!

[@veronicasibley5892]

Awesome video.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Glad you enjoyed this one!

[@maxsmith5984]

I always love your videos and I am impressed with how quickly your trees have grown. Your story of your neighbors peaches was very useful to me. Often I try home grown watery peaches and yet I go to farmer's markets for sweet peaches. Thank you for the tip!

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

I'm glad you're enjoying the content Max. That story I told is what has always kept us on track with thinning, especially when it comes to peaches. Such a stark difference in flavor and fruit quality!

[@B30pt87]

Thank you! I'm putting in two peach trees this year (first time growing peaches), and I am really glad I saw this video.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Glad it was helpful! You are going to love growing peaches!

[@danielfisch655]

Now I know what I need to do tomorrow, we have tons of thinning to do, this is a good problem to have and thank you for sharing.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hey Daniel! It's definitely that time of year. So much to do and with a food forest like yours it's easy to get overwhelmed! We know just how you feel!!

[@donnagross4888]

thanks...so helpful!

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Glad you found this one useful Donna!

[@AbidAli-bv2gl]

Excellent video, I have been following since your old farm. Also I am your fan too, What about your fig rooting, You are master of thinning fruit.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hey there Abid! You're always so encouraging with your comments, thank you! The cuttings still look the same, so I'm not sure whether or not they're going to take. It was a test for us this year, so we'll have to see if anything sprouts over the next few weeks!

[@marschlosser4540]

The old-timers would take some of the thinnings and 'pickle' them in brandy in case they over-dun-it on dairy or had something else that bound them up. I guess after a few with all that brandy, it's didn't matter they had to spend the night in the outhouse. But, I'm looking forward to thinning the apples next year. no blooms, but the tree was only planted late last summer. Cutting from a neighbor's peach tree look good. The first bunch dried up, but this bunch, taken when blooms were budding, are leafing out. that is a very good peach! The 'mother' tree is from a pit his dad planted from a tree on the ranch up in San Pedro Canyon. It's either a natural dwarf or was just so neglected all its life it never got very tall. I'm voting on neglect + parking trucks around it and a complete lack of irrigation. The capuli cherry is hard at work making cherries. I was surprised it survive summer because the day we got it, my son passed away (he had paid for it) and I neglected it badly. But, it has a ton of new growth and chains of flower buds. niio

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

First off Martin, I'm sorry about your son. I can't imagine losing my son and things would fall apart here rapidly if that should happen. Now, your story on the brandy is intriguing. I had never heard of that before and now I'm going to have to try that out!

[@marschlosser4540]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarm These things happen. we do not go before our time. Unless you have a problem with being bound, I really do not recommend it. But, different strokes. I know a few old-time Apaches that love the taste of castor oil. Maybe it goes well with Granny's homemade mescal. BTRW, that's where the Mescalero Apaches took their name, Maker of Mescal.

[@johanconradie2120]

golden rule, one fruit per branch nearer to trunk preferably

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

That is an excellent rule of thumb!

[@theorangetreehomestead6660]

This is just the vid I needed to see. I have thinned mine somewhat but I think I need to take off some more which is of course very hard to do.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

I know just how you feel Sean. It's tough to watch that fruit go, but it's so worth it. And I remember how heavy some of your fruit set is this year, so you should have a great harvest!

[@3sunsballer]

I want to Thank you for such GREAT videos on peach trees! I have a 4 yr old dwarf Bonanza that I've been terrified to Prune! Also, I hate thinning peaches. I feel so mean! Well, I only get those small peaches. Tons of them. Thx to you, I'm gonna be pruning tmrw and will gladly thin in March so I can have beautiful large, juicy peacheslike yours! Thank you so much!

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

We know just how you feel with this one and it took us a few years before we were really confident it would not affect the harvest. You won't regret it!!

[@xunheilvsnipezx3324]

Howdy howdy from Tucson, Great advice! our chick's are far along in the molting process, and I'm putting up a 6x8 green house Tucson update complete lol

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Here there in Tucson! Spring is quickly passing us by, so we're scrambling to get all that planting done as well. 100 degrees will be here very soon!

[@jessebrown1497]

We thinned our Anna apple as well.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Yes, it's about that time for those also!

[@1voluntaryist]

Great advice! Also, pruning the wood to stop a tall tree allows easy, safe picking. When you have grown large mesquites for cover/nitrogen you can try mango + other sub-tropical and if you have a wind break & heat sink (12' wall) you can experiment to see how to grow fruit others can't. Ask Shamus in Phoenix. No need to buy concrete block if you use your own earth for interlocking adobe blocks or rammed earth walls.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Lori is dead set on trying Mangoes, so you're suggestions are solid. I much prefer earthen heat retention over block and we have plans for more earthworks as we move onto the back half of the property, so that will be an option.

[@1voluntaryist]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarm Ramming or forming blocks, the dryer the mix, the stronger the bond/block. Five % Portland cement should work, or emulsified asphalt for waterproofing. I assume you will study to get the details on how to choose the soil, 70% sand/30% clay is ideal, but it varies based on the kind of sand and clay, so test a prototype. I used asphalt and I didn't have to wait for it to "cure" just dry. If you use PC you have to keep it watered for weeks to help cure. And it's expensive.

[@pswanberg1]

Big commercial growers absolutely thin their peaches, as well as many other fruits. Until the tree is really mature, you have to.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

An old time commercial grower is who we originally learned this from and, not surprisingly, his advice was solid!

[@pamelamercado6902]

Growing up as kids had access to all kinds of fruits it came from the fruit orchards I have always hated store-bought fruit very seldom do you get one that tastes like the fruit itself sometimes I'm not even sure what it is. Thanks for the info I had no idea how important it was to trim the peach trees for bigger size fruit

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Pamela, you are so right on with this comment! Once you've tasted fresh fruit from the tree you'll never want store bought fruit again! I would never eat a peach from the store, but I can't get enough of the peaches from these trees!

[@chetnash5991]

And in to the compost pile they go! I was wondering if you would just let a few lay under each tree for extra food

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hey Chet! Large quantities go into compost, if it is just one or two we see it usually goes under the tree.

[@peggyhelblingsgardenwhatyo7920]

I just planted a Florida Prince Peach 3 weeks ago in my garden in Windermere, Florida zone 9b USA 🇺🇸 I did see 1 bloom after a couple weeks, but it fell off. I'll be plucking off any blooms. Do you compost the fruit that you've pulled off?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hey Peggy. Yes, we compost those culled fruit. If it's a large amount like this we put it in the compost bin, if it's just a handful of fruit we toss those on the ground to compost with the mulch.

[@selinamularz9194]

I pulled all the tiny fruits off of my young fruit and almond trees (2 years old) this last weekend, and it sure hurts lol. I want them to have a good solid start though. I'm going to let them set some fruit next year, and I'm looking forward to it

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

We know just how you feel! It's what makes fruit trees a real test in patience. Giving the tree time to mature is what eventually pays off in loads of amazing fruit for years down the road!

[@tomdamour4902]

I planted several peach trees this fall. They are about 6ft tall and have never been pruned. I live in North Texas about 40 miles from the Dallas/ Fr. Worth metroplex. If I understand correctly I should prune the trees after the last frost of the year. Is that right?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Congrats on those new peach trees! For pruning you can do that any time after they lose their leaves and before they break dormancy. We usually prune in January as some of our varieties break dormancy in late January.

[@hippiebits2071]

Just curious what kind of watering schedule you guys are on now and at what average temp will you be likely to bump it up? I'm very happy with the results I'm seeing at home by following the practices on this channel!

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Great question. Right now we're watering once/week and the trees are getting about 60 gallons each. It will stay that way until we top 100 degrees on a regular basis. Then we go to twice/week with a total of about 90 gallons on each tree.

[@brandonunderwood4224]

What type of water source do you use? Peaches are definitely a southern fruit, your trees are huge haha. I'm in North Missouri and have a 4 yr old Peach that is 1/4 the size haha

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

@@brandonunderwood4224 we're on well water here. The soil and water are both very alkaline (soil test put our soil at 8.4). We also have a local nursery who grows his own root stocks and grafts right here in the area. That definitely makes a big difference for us as well!

[@brandonunderwood4224]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarm thanks for the reply

[@Evazita68]

You're referring to Florida prince peach. But do you do the thinning with any other kind of peach? Sorry if it's a silly question. I just want to be sure. I can't believe it's been 2 years already that you guys moved

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Yes, we thin all of our peach trees the same! Crazy right... we were just looking back on some videos when we moved here and started planting. It is crazy to see the difference!

[@tbjtbj4786]

I have had a lot of really good peaches. But up around iron city Ga. There usto to be a Amish peach farm. It was sold out about 10 years or so ago. They had some of the best peaches around. They were softball size and bigger and you needed a bit to eat them they were so juicy. They were a free stone. If you have and Amish farms you might want to check and see what breeds they have come up with. I can't remember the name they were Ga.-something.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

I've been to Georgie on a couple of occasions and peaches are what I remember most about my visits there. That and the big chicken everyone wanted to give directions to!

[@lisahendershot9530]

should we thin apple and plum trees too?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hey Lisa. Apple trees usually need thinning as well and we'll be doing that here shortly (they are still in the process of setting on most of our trees). Plums don't always need it, so that really depends. If you have a really heavy fruit set and there is a chance you'll lose a branch you definitely should. Our plum trees usually don't set all that heavy and can withstand the fruit load by the time they are fruiting really well. Also, the fruit is a bit smaller, so the tree can ripen more of them.

[@debbiegallett1125]

Do you do the same thinning for apples. Ours seem to have quite a lot of fruit set on the ends of the branches.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hey Debbie. We will thin the apples once they're done setting (it's getting close to time), but the process is a little different for apples as you're thinning in and around spurs. We'll cover that one soon, but essentially you'll want to get to no more than 2 apples per fruiting spur. We usually do that in stages with the first round getting down to the 3 best looking apples and then down to either 2 or just 1 by the time they are ready to ripen.

[@debbiegallett1125]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarm Looking forward to it.

[@brendan3081]

do you guys supplement nutrients on the peach trees? we have a 4yr old tropic snow which hasnt gotten past a maybe 2in diameter trunk with a set of pretty thin scaffold branches.... suggestions by chance?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hey Brendan! We don't do anything special with the peach trees. At least, not anything different from from the rest of the trees. One caveat, we buy all of our stone fruit from a local nursery who grows his own root stocks right here in town. While we've had some success with Dave Wilson trees that are grown with more common root stocks, they don't grow nearly as aggressive. Are you here in AZ and do you know what the root stock is?

[@brendan3081]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarm i am local-ish, down in Tucson....i honestly cant remember, we dont have the rootstock tag for the tree anymore.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

@@brendan3081 ok, so pretty much the same general environment we have here in Wittmann. If you'd like you can send us a pic of the tree and surrounding area and maybe we can figure out what's going on. Our email address is on the About tab here on YT.

[@kennhurt5636]

How do you store your fruit?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hey Kenn! Most fruit that is not eaten or used fresh we either freeze, dehydrate or can. We do smoothies almost daily, so with frozen fruit it gets us to the next harvest year. And we really enjoy making wine which we use frozen fruit as well!

[@hankypank23]

How do you keep the birds from decimating the peaches?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

We actually put bird netting over the entire tree. It is a pain to do, but the only thing we have found that works!

[@garyradford9381]

Hello Duane ,watch you guys planting those fruit tree that I guess you maybe bought from REID , you we're putting that 15--15--15 fert those stores in AZ forgot the names but what's the brand name and do you think Amazon will carry it thank you Gary

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hey Gary. The Fertizona fertilizer isn't a necessity as it can only be purchased from them directly (and in person). A good fruit tree fertilizer from Home Depot would fit the bill nicely for your new plantings.

[@garyradford9381]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarm thanks you

[@garyradford9381]

Hi again Duane, fert. Question when I plant my peach / nectarine / Santa Rosa plum I will put fert in the hole after that is feb?? End of May ? And then on labor day right now the fert in the end of May will it be to HOT to put the fert on those trees will that apply for my citrus trees as well I am thinking of going to ball game in the middle and of Sept then going to REIDs place for those ( if they are ready ) and then driving back home thank Gary

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

@@garyradford9381 we fertilize in February, May and September which is the standard schedule for us here in Arizona. The fertilizer is applied at the drip line of the tree and on top of the soil/mulch. That way it doesn't hurt the tree.

[@garyradford9381]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarm so I do not pull mulch back off then put the fert right on the dirt and push the mulch over that if I am water like you guys do ,am I reading this right are you saying pit the fert on top of that's the case do I water it in with the hose to wash it down to the dirt.thanks again Gary

[@johac7637]

Even commercial grower need to hand thin, not like pome fruits that the scorch the 2nd and beyond blossoms with a high N spray, and then at time need to hand thin.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

It's amazing the difference it makes in fruit quality and size.

[@breakingburque2200]

I’ve seen success with thinning on a pruned tree. On a tree that is left to grow as is they get huge on their own….. you just need a ladder truck to pick fruit.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

We've considered doing that with a few of the trees here on the farm just to see what happens. Probably not with peaches, but mulberries for sure and also the pear trees which can get MASSIVE!

[@hermanparisius2828]

Why didn’t you prune the competing branches

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

We prefer to only do Winter pruning on our fruit trees as they go "semi-dormant" during the early Summer months due to our hot, dry weather. However, you can do that as well if you prefer.

[@deecooper1567]

Makes my mouth water just thinking how beautiful they will be when ripe 🍑. 👵🏻👩‍🌾❣️

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Peaches are one of our favorite fruits here on the farm. A little extra work to keep them form the birds, but well worth the extra effort!

[@deecooper1567]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarm One of mine also🍑. We don’t get good fruit here. In the stores they are bland & soft. There used to be a fruit stand that brought from Cali… sometimes nice but mostly hard, little color or taste 🙃 Last year I planted a dwarf nectarine & peach tree. We’ll see how they do…. 👵🏻👩‍🌾❣️

[@MWinklerBooks]

It was quite painful to see how many you pulled off LOL But I get it. I'm allergic to peaches but we have grapefruit, tangelo, and a cocktail tree with lime, lemon, and orange. Is it the same process to thin these citrus?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Well, that's a bummer with the peaches. I (Duane) know just how you feel being allergic to Avocados and I love guacamole! You can thin citrus much like this, but depending on the final size of the fruit it is possible to leave them a bit more dense. For example, we do very little thinning of our limes, but the grapefruit we usually thin as much as half depending on the set and how large the branches are.

[@MWinklerBooks]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarm I’m allergic to avacado too 🤣 Thanks for the advice. We’ve had these trees for a couple years and never thinned them, so I’ll give it a try this season.

[@DOC_AZ]

Doesn't Reid say remove buds not immature fruit

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Yes he does, but we've always removed them after fruit set and had no issues. The problem I have with removing buds is you don't know what is going to set and keep on the tree. Couple that with the very real possibility of significant bud loss due to late frost and you may wind up with no fruit at all. He chastises us on a few of our procedures and this is one of them!

[@PolleyWong]

That thumbnail tho....👀

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Right! We cheated a little on that one as it's a picture of an Early Amber peach we harvested on the old farm a few years back. Assuming you're talking about peaches of course ;)

[@JS-jh4cy]

How do you stop the predators racoons, deer, birds, bears from eating your fruit

[@JS-jh4cy]

Deer eat everything even the damn leaves

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hey J S! Thankfully we don't have racoons, deer or bears. We do have cattle and javelina that we had to fence out of the entire property. For the birds, we actually put bird netting on the entire tree!

[@mikeinnj4424]

I have a problem with the deer eating the tree, fruit and all. I was about to invest in an electric fence when my sister in law bought me a sonic deterrent. It had different frequencies and even a strobe light. Best of all it ran on solar power. I was skeptical but now I love it! All I need to do is switch the frequency and location every few days just to help confuse the critters.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

@@mikeinnj4424 I've wondered about those before and am curious how big of an area they can effect.

[@mikeinnj4424]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarm If I pass in front of its field of vision of approximately 20’ or 30’ it will be triggered. It’s area of effect is cone shaped. I will generally use it to prevent them from eating the fruit as they ripen up until harvest.

[@GHumpty1965]

Loved this Video, I would add 1 thing, but you kind of did it without saying why. Always compost the peachs you thinned, or feed them to the pigs. If you leave them around the tree's, it encourages Rats, who will take up residents and cause even more problems.

[@marschlosser4540]

Compost, yes, but rats so far out in the sticks? European rats need a lot of moisture and make easy prey for coyotes and raptors, stray cats, and so on. I saw one rat in the last four years, and that was in Tucson. Green peaches (that small) were pickled in brandy and used as a laxative.

[@GHumpty1965]

@@marschlosser4540 Desert rats are Tan and white (Kangaroo Rats and Wood Rats), they blend into the environment quite well. You might even think they are large mice, they are not the European rats. They love the Jujube trees and are highly attracted to them. They will burrow into the soil eat everything they can. You will only notice mouse like turds at first. Then you might see them once they are brazen enough to move into out buildings. Cats keep them in check though.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

We usually compost the larger culls like this, but leave the smaller ones around the tree. We have plenty for rats to eat around here with all of the animal feed, so I think they're happy either way!

[@marschlosser4540]

@@GHumpty1965 We have packrats. Gray-brown to dark brown. The only real rat I saw in years here was in Tucson, medium gray and was a rat. I know what kangaroo rats look like. All Arizona natives have some fur on the tail. You can find mine rats, from Eastern Europe, in old mining towns.

[@slamboy66]

Was the thumbnail on purpose or do I have a one track mind?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Ha! Yes and yes. I do as well. Sir Mix-a-lot was running through my mind the whole time! In fact, I think I may have typed out thick and juicy at least once in Photoshop on this one!

[@rsigrowers3587]

:/

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Well, late is better than never right?

[@shamanking5195]

I know is necessary , but is so painful to watch do that ...

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Yeah, this is usually a tough one for most folks. It was for us in the beginning and even now we have to remind ourselves that it is all worth it in the end!