News
Winter tough on Indiana’s peach crop
Indiana may only grow around 500 acres of peach trees throughout the state, but Peter Hirst, Purdue Extension fruit tree specialist says the crop is valuable.
He says the harsh weather in February took a toll on the peach buds in the southern part of the state. “For many of our fruit crops they were able to handle some of those cold winter temperatures,” he says. “But sensitive crops, such as peaches, can’t handle so much cold. In the northern part of the state I expect them to be fine and in the southern part I expect to see some crop loss because of those cold conditions.”
As for the state’s other fruit crops – Hirst says the apples look great. “Apples are much more tolerant to the cold than sensitive crops like peaches,” he says. “Right now apple crops are looking good. But we’re early in the spring and a lot can still happen.”
He says fruit growers are hoping the weather stays cooler for the next couple of weeks to delay crop development.
I live in south central Ky. and haven’t seen a single peach blossom in my orchard. Had plenty of blooms last year but the late freeze killed them.