How to Grow Nectarines & Peaches

There are many different varieties of Peaches and Nectarines available for home gardeners to choose from, each with its own unique flavour and characteristics.

Peach varieties include: 'Anzac', 'Golden Queen', 'O'Henry', 'Redhaven', 'July Elberta', 'Angel' (Donut Peach), and 'White Gold'

Nectarine varieties include: 'Goldmine', 'Flavortop' and 'Fantasia' are also widely grown. 

They fruit at various times during the season. If you have the room, consider planting a mix of early, mid, and late-fruiting varieties to make the most of the fruiting season.

Choose a sunny spot with well drained soil. Enrich the soil with Yates Dynamic Lifter Soil Improver & Plant Fertiliser. If the soil is clay based, add gypsum and fork in well.

Dig the planting hole twice as wide and to the same depth as the root-ball. Remove the shrub from the container, gently tease the roots and cut away any circled or tangled roots.

Position in hole and backfill, gently firming down. Form a raised ring around the plant, creating a well so that water will go where it's needed most. Water in well.

Keep the soil moist as the plant establishes. Applying an organic mulch, such as sugarcane or bark chips, around the root zone will help keep the soil and roots moist.

Water deeply, once or twice a week, depending on weather conditions. Feed your tree in autumn, early spring and summer with Yates Thrive Natural Citrus & Fruit Pelletised Plant Food.

It can take three-to-four years for Peaches and Nectarines to produce fruit. Once fruit-bearing, to determine if fruit is ready for harvest, gently press on the fruit. If it gives slightly, it is ripe. It should also have a fragrant aroma. Hold the fruit in one hand and gently twist to detach. 

Peaches and Nectarines can be grown in pots, but look for the dwarf trees, such as Dwarf White Gold (Peach) or Dwarf Tuscany (Nectarine) - they're sensational space savers! 

Choose a pot at least 600 mm wide. Position in full sun and fill with quality potting mix, such as Yates Potting Mix with Dynamic Lifter. 

Remove the shrub from the container, gently tease the roots and cut away any circled or tangled roots. Position in hole and backfill, gently firming down. Water in well.

Keep the soil moist as the plant establishes. Applying an organic mulch, such as sugarcane or bark chips, around the root zone will help keep the soil and roots moist.

Water deeply, once or twice a week, depending on weather conditions. Feed your tree in autumn and early spring and summer with Yates Thrive Natural Citrus & Fruit Pelletised Plant Food.

It can take three-to-four years for Peaches and Nectarines to produce fruit. Once fruit-bearing, to determine if fruit is ready for harvest, gently press on the fruit. If it gives slightly, it is ripe. It should also have a fragrant aroma. Hold the fruit in one hand and gently twist to detach.

Heavily prune in winter to help open up the centre, to create an open vase-shape to allow more light and air to circulate. Once this framework is established, you should only need to remove dead, diseased, weak and crowded branches in the future. 

In the early stages of cropping, remove excess fruit – they can be rubbed off – so that the remaining fruit will grow to a good size. 

Peaches and Nectarines bear fruit on laterals (shoots) produced the previous summer. Lateral branches fruit for one season only, so there must be plenty of new ones coming on each year for continuous cropping.

It is possible to grow a Peach or Nectarine tree from seed, but the outcomes may vary depending on where the seed comes from. Since most Peach or Nectarine trees are hybrids, the seeds are unlikely to produce the same fruit.

Many dwarf Peach or Nectarine trees from garden centres are also grafted onto rootstock that keeps the tree more compact. As Peach or Nectarine trees grown from seed will not be grafted, they may eventually grow to a larger size than anticipated.

If you have the patience or want to try growing for fun, here's how:

Step 1. Gather a fresh Peach or Nectarine fruit and extract the seed. Rinse it gently to remove any fruit residue.

Step 2. Fill a small pot or container with Yates Seed Raising Mix. Plant the seed about a 2.5 cm deep, cover it lightly with seed-raising mix soil and gently pat it down.

Step 3. Place the container in a warm and sunny location, such as a windowsill or greenhouse. Nectarine or Peach seeds need temperatures above 15°C to germinate successfully.

Step 4. Water regularly to keep the mix moist, but not wet. It may take anywhere from two weeks to several months for the seed to germinate.

Step 5. After the seedling reaches 10-15 cm tall, transplant it into a larger pot filled with Yates Premium Potting Mix with Dynamic Lifter or directly into the garden. Choose a location with full sun and well-draining soil. Follow steps on How to Grow Peach or Nectarine Tree in a Garden or How to Grow Peach or Nectarine Tree in a Pot. 

Holes in plant leaves are normally a sign of a chewing pest such as Caterpillars or Grasshoppers. They may consume the whole leaf or leave jagged edges along the leaf margin. However, if there are distinctive small holes scattered across the leaf, this is caused by a disease called Shot Hole. 

If you notice that the leaves on your peach or nectarine tree are curling, it could be a sign of a sap-sucking pest such as Aphids. These tiny insects feed on the sap of the leaves, causing them to curl and distort. To control of aphids, spray with an insecticidal soap, like Yates Nature's Way Vegie & Herb Spray Concentrate.

Another common cause of curled leaves on Peach and Nectarine trees is a fungal disease called Peach Leaf Curl. This disease causes the leaves to pucker and develop red or purple blisters.

Shot Hole and Peach Leaf Curl must be treated well before the new leaves emerge. Once the leaves have sprouted, it is too late to spray.

To prevent Shot Hole and Peach Leaf Curl on Peach and Nectarine trees, spray with Yates Liquid Copper in late winter, when buds are swelling but before and within one week of bud opening.

If you find there are pin-prick holes in your fruit, and there are maggots inside the fruit, then it's Fruit Fly. To lure Fruit Fly away from Peach and Nectarine trees, and other susceptible fruiting plants, use Yates Nature's Way Fruit Fly Control.