Mid-August Peach and Nectarine Varieties for New Jersey – New and Standard

Gloria: Developed by the Rutgers Tree Fruit Breeding program. A large, globose to slightly ovate, 60-90% scarlet red over yellow ground color, yellow-fleshed, freestone peach ripening from August 16-22. The flesh is very firm with low acid and good, very sweet and sub-acid flavor. The tree is vigorous, spreading, and very productive with low susceptibility to bacterial spot. A unique variety because of its very attractive color, low acidity, and lasting flesh firmness. The bloom is late and extended compared to other varieties; hence, in a frost year, Gloria is more likely to avoid full crop loss. It has a very firm flesh that is slow to soften. Fruit physical and chemical (taste) properties of standard and new peach varieties grown in mid-August are described in Table 1.

Challenge: Because of the unique texture, consumers who prefer traditional melting flesh may not like ‘Gloria’. It should be marketed as a ‘neat peach’ for consumer education.

 

GlowingstarTM is a medium-large, globose, attractive, 60-70% orange, scarlet red over a greenish-yellow ground color, yellow-fleshed, freestone peach ripening August 13-18, approximately 21 days after Redhaven. The flesh is firm with a sweet and tangy flavor. The tree is vigorous, spreading, and very productive, with generally low susceptibility to bacterial spot. Tree growth may be slow on sandy sites due to high yield. A nice peach in a season with many good varieties.

Challenges: Watch for some unusually shaped peaches, which may look slightly smaller than usual but are bitter. Pronounced sutures are another problem.

AllstarTM is a medium-large, globose, 70–80% scarlet red over a yellow ground color; yellow-fleshed, uniform freestone peach ripening from August 13-16, approximately 19 days after Redhaven. The flesh is firm with good flavor.  The tree is upright, vigorous, and very productive, with generally low susceptibility to bacterial spot.

Challenges: Thorough bloom or fruitlet thinning will be required to achieve 2 ¾ inch fruits. Some years, the fruit will soften first on the shoulders.

Flamin Fury® PF#23 is a medium-large, globose, early coloring 70-80% crimson red over a greenish yellow to yellow ground color, yellow-fleshed, freestone peach ripening August 12-14, approximately 18 days after Redhaven. The flesh is firm to very firm with very good flavor. The tree is vigorous and productive.

Challenges: Delayed harvest can result in mealiness in fruit. Medium susceptibility to bacterial spot.

Flamin Fury® PF#24-007 is a very large, ovate to globose, 40-60% scarlet red over a greenish yellow ground color, yellow-fleshed freestone peach ripening August 13-16, approximately 19 days after Redhaven. The melting flesh is firm with good flavor. The tree is vigorous and moderately productive, with medium susceptibility to bacterial spot.

Challenges: Often has split pits with a light crop and a significantly high number of small, unripe fruits. This may cause the developing fruit to get too large and soft. This peach is often harvested too early because it is so large, before it has maximum flavor and color.

Messina is a large to very large, 80-90% scarlet red over a yellow ground color, yellow–fleshed, freestone peach ripening August 18-22. The flesh is firm to very firm with a very sweet and tangy flavor. The tree is vigorous, moderately productive, and has low fruit susceptibility to bacterial spot. This new attractive variety is of excellent size and generally has good fruit color with good light exposure.  A very sweet and subacid variety, it has been well received in the Mid-Atlantic region. Look for the under-color, as soon as green turns yellow, pick it. If you wait for more red from this point, the fruit will get softer. Requires frequent picking. Commonly pick every two days.

Challenges: The Tree looks to be somewhat prone to winter damage, and the flower buds are prone to frost damage.

Other good peach varieties with few but significant challenges.

Cresthaven is a highly attractive, yellow-fleshed peach variety with a very sweet and tangy flavor. However, the performance of this variety is quite variable, depending on the nursery stock; extra fertilization is needed to maintain the tree’s health. Also, if not appropriately picked, the stem pulls out, tearing the skin and reducing its storability. Contender is a medium-large to large-sized, yellow-fleshed, freestone peach ripening from mid-August. It is very productive and has low susceptibility to bacterial spot. It’s a late-blooming and high-yielding variety. Due to its very short shelf life, this variety is recommended for home orchardists. Sweet Breeze is an attractive, very large, fruited peach with very good flavor, but not firm enough to be marketed through wholesale shipping channels. Summerfest is a large, yellow-fleshed freestone, ripening August 22-25. The flesh is firm, melting, with a very good, slightly acidic flavor. The tree is very upright, with an atypical tree structure.

 WHITE-FLESHED PEACHES

Sugar Giant is a very large, ovate to slightly globose, 95-100% bright and full pinkish- to purplish-red with whitish ground color; white-fleshed, freestone peach ripening August 16-20, approximately 22 days after Redhaven. The flesh is very firm with a very good and slightly acidic flavor. Sugar Giant is not as firm as White Lady, Klondike White, or Snow Giant. The tree is vigorous and moderately productive with high susceptibility to bacterial spot. Sugar Giant can also get skin discoloration and inking under some weather conditions. Fruit physical and chemical (taste) properties of white-fleshed peach varieties Sugar Giant and August Rose and nectarine Fantasia grown in New Jersey are described in Table 2.


August Rose is an attractive late-season white-fleshed peach harvested 24 days after Redhaven. The freestone fruit is very firm and has a delicious flavor and melting texture. 60-90% medium red on cream and sizes 2 ¾ – 3 inches in diameter, somewhat irregular in shape. It is a very sweet, low-acid fruit that hangs well on the tree after commercial maturity. This tree is tolerant of bacterial leaf spot and constriction canker. It can fill the gap between Sugar Giant and Snow Giant.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blushingstar is a medium to medium-large, globose, attractive, 60-80% purplish red over cream-green ground color, white-fleshed, freestone peach ripening from August 13-17, approximately 19 days after Redhaven. The flesh is firm, sweet with significant acidity, and very good flavor. The tree is vigorous and productive with medium susceptibility to bacterial spot. A nice peach all around, also suggested for home orchard plantings.

NECTARINE

Fantasia is a large to medium-large, ovate,70-90% scarlet-red over yellow-greenish ground color, yellow-fleshed, freestone nectarine ripening from August 23- 26. The tree is vigorous and regularly productive with medium to high susceptibility to bacterial spot. The fruit is a large-sized, yellow-fleshed nectarine. The fruit gets large as it ripens. The smooth, glossy, full red makes it a very attractive nectarine. It is also a high-yielding variety.

Arctic Belle and Arctic Gold are attractive, white-fleshed, freestone nectarines ripening during mid-August. However, both these varieties have high susceptibility to bacterial spot. Arctic Belle will get spots, speckles, and cracks under adverse conditions.

 

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