Copper spray

I've just sprayed my peach trees with Burgundy mix (a variant on Bordeaux) and was wondering how long copper sprays have to be on the plant to be effective? We got a light shower within 24 hours of application and I can still see a light blue tinge around the bud edges.

Reply to
FarmI
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I've always sprayed again if there is rain within 48 hours. However, there is a difference between RAIN and light showers.

Actually, I always spray at least twice. First, I spray right after pruning (January). Then, I spray again just as the flower buds swell and show some red (not yet open, March).

Are you in the southern hemisphere? It's quite late to be spraying peaches in the northern hemisphere. Aha! You're in Australia. There, I would spray in July (now) and again in September.

I've seen no sign of leaf curl this year. My peaches are ripe right now; they're quite good. Although I thinned them severely, I still have more than I can give away.

Reply to
David E. Ross

:-)) Rain is something I dream about after about 7 years of drought. It was indeed a light shower.

Thanks for that advice although by the way the buds are swelling, I'm not too sure they'll make it to Sept before bursting.

Do you fertilise heavily on the premise that it forces peaches though the leaf curl? I've read that repeatedly but dont' know if to believe it or not. I find a lot of stuff in books isn't necessarily so in practice eg see the thread on animal manure.

My peaches are ripe right

Dang! Do you have to get my taste buds slobbering? It's midwinter and cold cold cold. The least you could have done was attach a ripe peach to your post................

Reply to
FarmI

We're in our second year of drought. One state reservoir is at 75% of capacity; the others are at 67% or lower. None are above their average actual capacity.

It's been 52 days since our last measurable rain, and we normally won't see rain again until late October or sometime in November. We had a total of 12.35 inches (31.4 cm) since last September. Last year, by this time, we had 4.57 inches (11.6 cm).

I broadcast some commercial, off-brand lawn fertilizer around the tree in the early spring. It's not only for the tree but also the primroses and grape hyacinths growing under it and the asparagus growing behind it. Overfeeding promotes leaf growth in place of fruit.

I picked the last of the crop last night. The bees and wasps got quite a few. The problem is that the season is quite short; they all ripen at the same time.

Once they are picked, they are quite perishable. If not eaten quickly, they rot. That's because they are tree-ripened (not like the junk sold in the markets).

My wife did make a delicious peach crisp (more like a cobbler). And I gave away more than a dozen. I trade my peaches for my neighbors' tomatoes and figs.

If I can figure out how, I'll upload one of my last peaches via FTP to my Web server. You can then download it from there. :)

Reply to
David E. Ross

Look at this.

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Reply to
Bill

That sounds good to me, but then after so long many of this country's dams are in the low double digits after so long. Mind you that doesn't impact on us as we harvest our own rain water and have a couple of good dams that so far (touch wood) provide enough for our needs. Come mid summer though the conditions can get very bad. Last year I had to cover plants in the middle of the day with old curtains to stop them from dessicating.

That is very low rainfall. My husband say's that the Napa valley reminded him very much of Australia. Depending on how close that is to you, you might have similar growing conditions to mine.

I assume from your mention of reservoirs that you are on a municipal water supply?????

So do you get leaf curl? And if you don't, do you put that down to the early spring feed or your spay program, or could be either or both?

Do you can them at all?

Yumbo. Thanks. I'm waiting with mouth open.........

Reply to
FarmI

On 7/22/2008 4:55 AM, FarmI wrote [in part]:

The Napa Valley is about 500 miles north of me. We get hotter summers with less humidity.

Yes. Wells in my area produce undrinkable water. Ground water is so highly mineralized that it really is not good even for irrigation unless it's mixed with imported water from the California Water Project (the state reservoirs).

Some years, I do get some leaf curl. It's never enough to defoliate the tree. I attribute the low incidence (the lack this year) to spraying.

I used to preserve my peaches in brandy. Take a large, old fashioned canning jar (the type with a glass lid, rubber ring, and wire bail). Blanch the peaches in boiling water just long enough to remove the skin. Quarter or halve the skinned peaches and remove the pits. Pack the peach pieces in the canning jar. Add about a tablespoon of cloves, intermixed with the peaches. Pour about 1/2 cup of sugar on top of the peaches. Fill the jar with cheap, off-brand brandy. Seal the jar.

Let the peaches soak in the brandy for about six months, inverting the jar about every two weeks. Enjoy!!

No sterilizing the jars. No hot water bath. No cooking. No refrigeration.

Note: The peaches at the very top and bottom may discolor. This is because, as the jar is inverted, they are exposed to the small amount of air in the jar. This discoloration does not affect the edibility or taste of the peaches.

I know someone who did the same with plums and vodka and with apricots and rum, omitting the cloves in both cases.

Reply to
David E. Ross

Sounds good. Will copy the recipe and set it aside for later in the summer. I make a mixed canned fruit brandy mix which is very handy to keep in the fridge for those times when a dessert is needed right here and right now or else murder will occur.

Reply to
FarmI

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