Vineyard peach ∗ The great guide from A to Z

Characteristics

• Scientific name: Prunus persica 'vineyard peach'
• Varieties of the genus: Peach (Prunus)
• Family: Rose family (Rosaceae)
• Synonyms: blood peach, vineyard peach
• Growth type: shrub or tree
• Growth height: 250 cm to 400 cm
• Flower: simple
• Flower color: pink
• Flowering time: March to April
• Fruit: medium-sized drupe
• Harvest time: September to October
• Use: jam, liqueur, compote

Hobby gardener Thomas Pitch - passionate vineyard peach farmer

harvest time

In September things get really busy in Germany's mild growing regions because it's the harvest time for the legendary vineyard peach begins. The delicious, medium-sized drupes are ready to be eaten when the firm flesh under the furry skin gives way under light pressure. The peaches are ideally harvested two to three days before they are ready to eat. Under these conditions, vineyard peaches can be stored for up to six weeks.

Of course, one round of harvesting is not enough for the vineyard peach. The peach tree is picked through several times. Because the flowers unfold one by one, the fruit ripens in stages. The following section summarizes important characteristics of the flowering splendor.

blossom

In March and April the Moselle valley is transformed into a fairy tale of pink blossoms. Before the elongated leaves sprout, vineyard peaches put on their blossoms. A flower is characterized by the following characteristics:

• Form: simple, bell-shaped, fivefold
• Size: 2.5cm to 3.5cm in diameter
• Colour: light pink to dark pink
• stamens: reddish to yellowish
• Arrangement: single
• Ecology: hermaphroditic

Height

Tree nurseries usually offer vineyard peaches as a bush with a stem height of 40 cm to 60 cm. In this variant, the fruit trees thrive up to a height of 300 cm to 350 cm. Optionally, you can prune a vineyard peach into a half-stem, a common one tree shape in the hobby garden with a trunk height of 100 cm to 160 cm and a final height of 500 cm to 800 cm. For education to standard this Prunus persica variety is too weak-growing.

Process vineyard peach

With its furry skin, a vineyard peach does not invite you to eat it fresh. Processed into compote, jam, vinegar or fruit brandy, the fruit inspires with its full-bodied, intensive aroma. Be inspired by the following recipes for delicious enjoyment with and without tipsy:

jam recipe

You can use these ingredients to conjure up a delicious vineyard peach jam: 1,400 g fruit, 1 packet Powdered gelatine (3:1), 250 g sugar (ideally cane sugar), 2 tbsp lemon juice, 150 ml elderberry syrup (self boiled down or bought).

1. Cut furry shells crosswise
2. Immerse fruit in boiling water for 30 seconds, rinse and peel
3. Weigh 1 kg of flesh and cut into small pieces
4. Bring the peach pieces, sugar and gelling powder to the boil in a saucepan
5. Cook for 3 minutes while stirring constantly
6. Take the pot off the fire, stir in the lemon juice and elderberry syrup and bring to the boil for 60 seconds

Pour the hot jam into clean screw-top jars, close tightly and leave to cool upside down.

Liqueur Recipe

Deep red blood peach liqueur from our own production succeeds with these ingredients: 500 g red Vineyard peach (optionally another delicious variety), 250 g white rock candy, 700 ml vodka (preferably red vodka):

1. Wash the fruit, dab dry, halve, deseed and cut into cubes
2. Pour fruit cubes into a glass bottle
3. Add rock candy and vodka
4. Close the bottle tightly and shake vigorously
5. Leave in a cool, dark cellar for 4 weeks

At the end of the maturing period, strain the liquid. Pour the finished liqueur into several small bottles. I'll get it.

Pickle the vineyard peaches

Actually, the fruits are much too good to be preserved. By pickling vineyard peaches, the fruits are a treat for the palate and eyes at the same time. It's that easy:

1. Boil 200 g powdered sugar with 300 ml water
2. 2 handfuls harvest freshness Add lemon balm leaves
3. Peel the peaches, halve, deseed, cut into finger-thick wedges and place in mason jars
4. Strain the syrup, heat it up again and pour it over the vineyard peaches
5. Close jars tightly

Serve pickled vineyard peaches warm or cold with waffles, ice cream and pudding.

Plant vineyard peach

Traditionally, a vineyard peach is grown from seed. Because the peaches are self-fruiting and have no pits, the seedlings carry all the good qualities of their mother trees and bring high-quality fruit to the home gardener. How to do it:

pull from the core

Peach kernels are subject to a natural germination inhibition, which you can overcome with a simple pre-treatment. In view of a high failure rate, we recommend the sowing from several seeds. How to grow a vineyard peach from the stone:

1. Thoroughly clean the seeds from ripe fruits
2. Soak in water for 8 days
3. Place cores in a box of coarse sand
4. Store in a dark, cool place at 8° to 10° Celsius
5. Stir the mix of seeds and sand every 4 weeks until the woody shell breaks open

Plant each germinating seed 2 cm deep in a pot with loose potting soil. In a bright, warm location, keep the substrate constantly slightly moist. After a frost-free hibernation, you can transplant the young vineyard peach into the garden.

Transplant into the bed

The best planting time for the warmth-loving vineyard peach is in spring. Choose a full sun, wind-protected location with nutrient-rich, loose, well-drained soil. Please enrich the excavation of a generously dimensioned planting pit with compost and horn shavings.(€9.00 at Amazon*) A support post protects the young tree from windthrow. On the day of planting and in the period that follows, water generously and regularly without waterlogging. mulching you the tree disc with bark mulch or compost to protect against drought stress and weed growth.

digression

Weingarten – exemplary diversity

Cultivate vineyard peach

Moderate watering, regular Fertilize and expert cut care are the main pillars in the care program. Read important tips for a healthy, high-yielding vineyard peach tree in the following sections:

• Pour: Pour vineyard peach when the tree disc verifiably dried to a depth of 1 to 2 cm
• Fertilize: mid-February 150 g bedrock meal scatter, 8 days later fertilize with compost (5 l/m²) and horn shavings (100 g/m²)

Cut vineyard peach

Annual long shoots are the most valuable fruit wood at the vineyard peach. Pruning care is concentrated on these 30 to 50 centimeter long branches. A distinction must be made between true and false fruit shoots. Short bouquet shoots also bear fruit. Wood shoots do not bear fruit. The following table provides a summary overview for the perfect cut peach tree:

The best time is in February, just before the flowering period begins. If a vineyard peach bears too many fruits, intervene to regulate it with a summer pruning. The thinning cut aims to create a hand's width between the fruits. Measure the cutting circumference so that thirty to forty oblong leaves are available for each fruit. As a result, you harvest medium-sized vineyard peaches in premium quality in September instead of many small fruits without aroma.

Curling disease - tips for hobby gardeners

With regard to the dreaded leaf curl (Taphrina deformans) in fruit growing, the all-clear can be given at this point. A vineyard peach is hardly susceptible to the fungal infection. In fact, the fruit tree is so robust that simple countermeasures are sufficient in an emergency. Depending on site conditions and vitality, a small percentage of the leaves are usually affected. In early summer, the tree simply sheds infected leaves, allowing fresh foliage to thrive in that spot. You can let nature take its course or intervene manually.

A typical symptom is colorful leaf curling in early spring. By the treetop If you regularly check for stunted leaves and remove them by hand, you can give the vineyard peach a helping hand. Further measures are not required, such as the use of fungicides. Vinegar is not recommended as a home remedy for frizz. Spraying too early has no effect. Too late spraying with acetic acid destroys the entire shoot.

Popular Varieties

With delicious peach varieties The specialist trade invites you to try out and discover the vineyard peach category:

• Red Vineyard Peach: Premium variety known as blood peach with red fleshy fruits and furry red skin.
• Poysdorf vineyard peach: white, aromatic pulp, good resistance to leaf curl.
• winegrowers dream: cream-colored, juicy-sweet-sour flesh, smooth skin, ideal for fresh consumption.
• Rosa del West: typical vineyard peach aroma, furry skin, ideal for pickling and preserving.
• Wachau vineyard peach: robust variety from Austria, light flesh, red-cheeked, furry skin.
• Styrian vineyard peach: aromatic, medium-sized fruits, ready to eat in September, tolerant to leaf curl.

The trade cares little about the correct botanical assignment of peach varieties and has christened another Prunus persica variety the vineyard peach. It is the flat peach or plate peach (Prunus persica var. platycarpa). The yellow-fleshed fruits have a thinly hairy skin and are ideal for fresh consumption.

FAQ

Are vineyard peaches healthy?

Vineyard peaches are very healthy because the fruits contain a lot of vitamin C. Regular consumption strengthens the immune system. With a meager 40 kilocalories per 100 grams of pulp, all Prunus persica are a healthy treat for the whole family. Furthermore, vineyard peaches are considered a natural boost against heart and circulatory diseases or stomach problems. American researchers discovered that peaches demonstrably slow down the aging process in human cells.

How to protect a vineyard peach from frost?

The filigree blossoms, which unfold on the vineyard peach as early as March, are sensitive to frost. The best protection against frost damage is to delay flowering. You can do this by shading the peach tree in spring when the sun is shining. Clamp a linen cloth or a garden fleece over the crown while the sun shines.