By Clint Thompson
Peach season is underway in Alabama. One grower has high hopes for this year’s crop, which could last into September.
“It’s a heavy crop. We had to do a lot of thinning. I think we did okay with that. Peaches are on the trees, and now it’s our job to take care of them,” said Mike Reeves with Reeves’ Peach Farm is located in Hartselle, Alabama, located just southwest of Huntsville. “They’re in very good shape right now. We’ve been getting a lot of rain but not too much to damage the peach crop right now. You get this kind of rain we’re getting in the middle of your main harvest, it can make a difference sometimes; not as much as it would on a crop like strawberries.
“We’ve just got to do our due diligence, whether it’s chemical applications for insects or disease. But yeah, they look good and are growing good. We’re looking forward to a good crop.”
Weather cooperated for Alabama’s peaches to have the potential for a bountiful crop.
“We had good winter weather, plenty of chilling. It stayed fairly cold when it was supposed to be cold. We had maybe one event where we had some freeze. It just lost blooms, but as far as overall crop, nothing hurt,” Reeves said.
The peak of the peach season for Reeves starts in early July and lasts almost through August, with an occasional pick in September.
“We try to stretch it out as long as we can. We have a retail operation, and we want to have peaches there as many days as we possibly can,” Reeves said. “We retail probably 90% of ours. We have our own farm market and go to a few other places to set up and sell.”