Fruit tree – to kill or not to kill the peaches

 

This year we had a new challenge come late summer with the peach tree in our backyard. We have four fruit trees– apple, peach, plum and cherry. The plum tree didn’t survive the hacksaw job we took to it one weekend. The apple and cherry seem to be coming along just fine. It’s the peach tree that really has me questioning my dedication to gardening.

Peach cobbler; Peachy-pecan banana bread; Curried fruit; Bellinis. There is no shortage of recipes in my collection that deserve fresh peaches and what a better place to get them than your own backyard. Picked right from the branch, my cobbler never tasted so good but it’s awfully hard to justify the work of maintaining a fruit tree.

In late August and early September, you can buy a basket full of local Ontario peaches for $2. The maintenance and sprays for keeping the trees bug-free costs closer to $100.  Not to mention the mess of rotten and forgotten peaches that dig into the grass and to the dog’s feet. We’ll give it another year to prove its worth. In the meantime if anyone has any suggestions on keeping a fruit tree alive with minimal gardening dedication – let me know.

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