Nectarines are a mutation of the peach. Its aroma triggers a longing for summer and sun. Early ripening varieties allow a harvest at the beginning of summer, while late varieties deliver fruit until the beginning of autumn.
Nectarines also thrive in Germany
harvest time
In Germany there are some fruit growers dedicated to the cultivation of nectarines. This has the advantage that the fruit reaches the customer freshly harvested and full of aroma. The harvest season for these home grown saplings extends from mid-July to early September. Goods imported from European countries will be available in supermarkets from May. It comes from regions on the Mediterranean like Spain.
Cultivate in the garden
Imported fruits must be harvested when they are unripe so that they can survive the transport undamaged. Since they no longer fully ripen, they taste less aromatic than nectarines harvested when they are ready to eat. A nectarine tree can be grown from a core under the right conditions, allowing you to pick aromatic fruit yourself in your garden.
preparation and cultivation
Dry the core for a month at room temperature and then put it in a planter with loose potting soil. The hole should be 15 centimeters deep. Place the pot in a mini greenhouse (€7.95) where you can ensure temperatures of 24 degrees. Moisten the substrate occasionally. If you cover the soil with mulch (€239.00), you will have to spray less often. It can take up to 30 days for the first cotyledons to appear.
How to care for the wood:
- Place the sapling in a brighter spot and get used to sunny conditions
- Keep the substrate slightly moist and avoid waterlogging
- put outdoors from May and repot if necessary
plant out
Nectarine trees are conditionally hardy. The young plant spends the cold season during the first few years in a frost-free winter quarters. In mild regions, the trees may be planted in the garden. Cultivation in a bucket that spends the summer outdoors is possible without any problems. The fruit trees thrive in a wind-protected and sunny location where the soil ensures humus-rich, loose and rather acidic conditions. A mixture of sand and hummus is ideal.
promote fruit ripening
The peach variety is extremely sensitive to waterlogging. If you want high yields, you must ensure well-drained and very fertile soil and exercise care in watering. Regular watering also has a positive effect on fruit size and number in humid regions when there are long periods of drought. Watering on shallow soils is particularly important. A layer of mulch ensures even soil moisture.
tips
When the tree has budded or is in the middle of flowering, it must not be exposed to sub-zero temperatures. Even a few degrees below freezing damage the flowering plants. The trees are well protected on a south-facing house wall.