Not sure if my peach tree needs help - Ask Extension
Hi! I have a peach tree that I estimate is ~10 years old. It is maybe in poor health, but I am not an expert and I am wondering if you could help me d...
Knowledgebase
Not sure if my peach tree needs help #805073
Asked August 07, 2022, 2:52 PM EDT
Hi! I have a peach tree that I estimate is ~10 years old. It is maybe in poor health, but I am not an expert and I am wondering if you could help me decide whether to contact an arborist for in-person assistance. The tree bloomed beautifully this year but almost all the flowers were lost during the freeze in late April so it only has two peaches currently growing on the tree. It has had two periods of yellowing and dropping leaves this summer. The leaves did not appear to indicate either over- or under-watering (it is on a drip and it runs 6 mins every other day, which is in line with what the previous owners of our house said they did). After the first time it dropped leaves, I fertilized using Espoma Tree-Tone (6-3-2). It then dropped leaves again a few weeks later. I have also noticed these marks on the trunk (photo attached). We have a few Japanese beetles, but not so many that I can't make a dent in their numbers by removing them by hand. Any guidance about how much I should worry would be super helpful!
Denver County Colorado
Expert Response
Good news! Your peach tree looks good in those photos! It is very common for trees to "shed" leaves when the heat of summer kicks in, particularly after a wet spring when they have pushed a lot of foliar growth they can no longer support. That may be what happened here. I do wonder whether your irrigation set-up is optimal. When trees are newly-planted, drip emitters are set up close to the trunk so that the rootball gets the water it needs. As the tree establishes and the roots grow out into the surrounding area, the emitters need to be adjusted and more emitters added to accommodate the larger plant. Roots grow where there is moisture, so if you have only a few emitters that have been in the same spots they were when the tree was small, you could run a hose over there periodically and use a sprinkler to water all those areas in-between the emitters. But, honestly, your tree looks good.