A Gardeners Forum Forums General Discussion The Food Garden Forum Fruit Forum How long before I get peaches?

I'm a newbee and have NO idea how to post a new message on here so I guess I'll reply.

I just want to know about a young peach tree. My daughter planted a peach seed this summer(unbeknownst to me), and it grew! It is about 6 inches tall and in a large pot outside. The weather is getting cooler and the leaves fell off. I pushed dirt up around the base. Should I bring it inside or leave it outside? If left outside, do I need to put a jar or some other protection over it so that it won't freeze as the weather gets colder? Will it die now that all the leaves have fallen off? Do I prune it before it is a year old? My daughter will be crushed if it dies (she loves peaches). She is 7 now, will she be an adult before she gets fruit?

Thanks for any info.

Mdetwilr,

Did you get frost? If you did, there's a chance that the tree won't make it. Even if you haven't gotten frost, you'll want to bring the tree inside just to be safe. Since it was grown from seed, you probably don't know the variety and what "Hardiness zone" it will survive in.

USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map

The question on how long it will take to bear fruit is kinda tricky. If it survives, don't count on getting fruit for at least 4 years. It could be as many as 8 years before it is ready to bear fruit. Even if it gets to the blooming/bearing stage, you don't know if your tree is self pollinating or not: i.e you may need pollen from another peach tree to get it to bear fruit. You also need to know that the resulting fruit is not going to be the same as the one that your daughter ate. Propagation via seed (sexual reproduction) will produce genetically diverse offspring. It could be bigger or smaller, sweeter or more bland, better or worse than the original.

Good luck with your peach tree. Let us know how it goes.

It has frosted here a couple of times so far. Not the hard crunchy frost though. Ok, I'll bring it in. Is it okay for the leaves to be gone? Do I water in the winter? We're hoping to move maybe by spring time. I'm looking for a place that has established fruit trees. Hopefully this little guy can stay alive and fit in. Our daughter will be SO happy if it survives. We live in zone 8.

Thanks