Large Orange Tree and Early Peach Presenting Problems

Q. I have both a ‘Washington’ navel orange and ‘FlordaPrince’ peach tree planted this spring that a local nursery claimed was 8 to 10 years old. The peach tree produced lots of small fruit, but the orange tree produced tons of flowers but fruit that dropped from it after it flowered. The trees don’t look so good now. Your opinion please?

'FlordaPrince' peach tree three years in the ground.

A. It sounds like many issues may be involved. Pictures would have helped. As it stands right now there is not much you can do. Some years you will get a good harvest and other years you won't. That is the nature of the varieties and location in the landscape you selected. Much of your future harvest depends on the weather, fruit tree location and the microclimate of your landscape. That's the Mojave Desert for you. In the future remember this.

Avoid Buying Large Trees

Next time select smaller trees with low branching at the beginning. If there are production issues, then they can be ironed out early. It is important to shade the trunk as quickly as possible when growing fruit trees of any type in the desert. 

Even though this peach tree was growing in or near a lawn it did not have enough shade to protect it from the hot desert sun common to the Mojave Desert.

Shading the trunk can be done with its own growth, painting the trunk or shading it with a trunk protector. However, it’s easier to remove branches that you don't want than to wish you had them. Our hot desert sun can be very brutal. I am leaning more and more toward leaving the lower branches (below the knee) on fruit trees as long as possible rather than remove them at planting time.

Consider Different Varieties

Consider different varieties of fruit trees. Both varieties may not a wise choice for different reasons. ‘FlordaPrince’ peach is an early producing fruit variety that also flowers very early, about mid-February in our climate. Selecting a variety of peach that produces flowers later gives you a more reliable harvest in our climate due to spring freezes.

Yes, that's right. Peaches from 'Earlitreat' peach in May in North Las Vegas, one of the earliest peaches. Producing early peaches can present a whole host of problems if your weather and microclimate don't cooperate.

Selecting a more cold tolerant orange type (such as a clementine, aka, tangerine) is sometimes a better idea. Selecting a fruit tree that gives you improved tolerance to freezing winter temperatures may be a better idea in the long run than a ‘Washington’ navel orange which doesn’t. Selection of a cold tolerant variety does not help provide a consistent fruit load every year but may help its future survival.