Nectarines trees with fruits that never ripe.

Last year I bought a dwarf nectarine tree from a local nursery from Alexandria, Virginia where I live. Last year the tree produced only about seven or eight nectarines that they all fell from the tree when they were green. This year the tree blossoned really nice and they were a lot of fruit. However, a lot of nectarines fell on the ground while they were green. The nectarines that remained on the tree which were quite a lot they never riped and instead got brown spots all over and the fruit got wrotten.

Can someone tell what problem I have and how to solve it?

This message was edited Aug 18, 2005 2:50 PM

There are several things that come to mind.
First, you tree is very young and doesn't have the energy to support large quantities of fruit. I like to remove any fruit for the first 2 years to allow the tree to devote its energy to developing a healthy root system.
Second, many trees set more fruit than they can support. Some trees self prune some, but don't drop enough so you may end up with many small ones. You need to thin some fruit.
Third, peaches and nectarines suffer from peach leaf curl which can cause brown rot of fruit later in the year. Control of brown rot starts with using a dormant spray in winter. In California, I sprayed once in November, once in December and again just before the flower buds opened. Switch to a summer spray if you still have a problem.

I've enclosed 2 excellent links with lots of useful information.

http://muextension.missouri.edu/explore/agguides/hort/g06030.htm
http://hgic.clemson.edu/factsheets/HGIC1354.htm

Betty:

You don't know how much I appreciate you answer to my problems. You answered all my questions, plus you also send me some good links to get more information. All the information will kept and I will do.

God bless you for the help you have provided me.

Enjoy the rest of summer.

From the bottom of my heart, many thanks

Rosa

Pinita H! My nectarine trees will thin themselves from excess fruit or I will try to thin out the fruits myself in the spring. I use a bordeux mix in the early spring before the trees even think of breaking dormancy for peach leaf curl. Sounds like your tree is trying to produce you some fruit and it will in time. A good spray program will control insect problems and disease problems but requires some timely applications. I made lots of nectarine jam recently and hope you will be getting some nectarines next season off your new tree.Bettydee has some great links there.

cuckoo

Hi Cuckoo:
I guess you like blackberries. Thanks for answering! What is a "bordeaux mix"? You right that my tree is very productive, and the fruit is very sweet and juicy. shame of me that I did n't sprayed this spring. Bettydee says that she sprayed in November and December, but she was in California. Do you think that I should spray on those months. Here in the east is a lot colder than California. You live in Missouri, and cold is worst in your area than mine. Give me a hint.

Thanks again.

The general recommendation is for dormant spraying to eliminate as many of the overwintering pests as possible regardless of where you live. However to find out what is recommended for your area, contact your local cooperative extension service.
http://offices.ext.vt.edu/view.cfm?webname=alexandria

A bordeaux mix has 50% copper in it. I have enclosed a website that shows how to mix your own, but you can buy it as well. Just be sure that they ingredients have at least 50% copper.
http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn7481.html

Veronica

Pinita If you only have a few trees or just this one you can by a fungicide and insecticide all in one probably at a local hardware type store. This spray can be put on (follow the directions of course!!)in the spring after you've applied your dormant oil spray application( late in the winter ). An application of bordeaux spray applied before any buds break(late winter too) will control peach leaf curl.
We have a small home orchard(about 30 trees) with all kinds of various fruits and now it's more economical for me to buy and mix my own sprays( fungicides and insecticides). I used to buy the small quart sized spray(called fruit tree spray) at the hardware stores when my trees were small.
Your area extension office will likely have a fruit growers book that will help you a lot. I have one for Missouri that is excellent.
Yes Pinita I love to grow blackberries too!! and eat them................cuckoo

Veronica and cuckoo thans for the whole bunch of information of spraying the trees. I have learned a lot from both of you.
I wish you both good luck and succes in all you do

Love

Rosa

I just planted 2 peach trees this past fall. I planted Elberta and
Belle of Georgia. They are young trees, just about 4 ft. tall and
only look like a couple of twigs. When is the right time to start
spraying them ? I really don't expect to have a crop this year and
maybe not even next. But do I spray anyway, or is that just for
when it's ready to fruit ?

Pinita, if you had peach leaf curl, you would know, The leaves curl up and make a very ugly display before falling off. Brown rot is quite prevalent in the east, and can be controlled with copper sulphate mixes as Betty Dee said. There are other problems which cause drop from a healthy looking tree, commonly referred to as wormy fruit. These are the larva of the PLUM CURCULIO and the ORIENTAL FRUIT MOTH. Again controlled with a by the book spray progam. Also prevalent in the east is the peach borer, which will effectly destroy the tree. That thing has to stopped as it emerges from the ground about the time the peaches start budding out. If they are present, you will note a jellylike substance oozing from the bark of the tree. Dormant oil sprays will control scale and several other diseases applied when the weather warms but before the tree breaks dormancy.

Pinita Just wondering how your trees are doing this winter and before you know it spring will be here. I will be doing some pruning very late this winter on my nectarines and other fruit trees. I could do it now its been so warm this winter in Missouri. Next I will try to get a dormant oil sprayed on them to smother over wintering scales, mites, etc. I think you will see some good growth on your trees this spring anyway I hope you do.

cuckoo