The Total Produce group has planted trial volumes of both white and yellow flesh peaches in the past week.
Peter Bevan, research agronomist at Total Cherry said: “Our first planting of some 90 trees took place in north Kent both at our own site and on the Rochester farm belonging to one of our growers John Myatt in the hope of repeating the success of his grandfather.”
The three year old trees on dwarf rootstock have been sourced from an Italian propagator and include many new numbered varieties from an Italian breeding programme not seen before in the UK. Bevan expects some fruit to be picked next year but the first true crop to be harvested in August 2014.
Although peach cultivation in the UK flourished under the Victorians in walled gardens and under glass, it was not a commercial endeavour.
Dr Drew Reynolds, technical and business director at Total Cherry said: “Now with the long term forecast of drier winters and warmer summers we believe that there may be a potential for commercialisation.” Reynolds already has four years of UK apricot trials under his belt.
Meanwhile, new cherry varieties are also going in the ground and good trial results have come from high density planting of varieties from France, eastern Europe, Chile, the US and Australia.
However Reynolds warned that while confidence is running high long term, prevailing weather conditions however mean the UK stonefruit crop is on a “knife edge”, which could mean lighter crops. He said: “High temperatures followed by a period of cold and rain may affect blossom set of plums and cherries and then the natural thinning period known as the 'June drop' This position will become clearer next month.”
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