A nectarine tree is not only a popular Mediterranean plant on the balcony, terrace or in the garden because of its decorative flowers. It also offers delicious fruits that can be harvested. Due to the prevailing climate and weather conditions, the harvest time here is different from what is known for commercially available fruits. The following article provides all the information about the best harvest time so that your own fruit tastes just as good.
Harvest nectarines
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In order to be able to harvest nectarines, they must develop their beautiful flowers in the spring. The decorative and fragrant flowers usually delight the hobby gardener in spring in April. Depending on the climate zone and the length of winter in a year, the flowering time can be postponed here, which will result in a later harvest of the tasty nectarines. In general, it can be assumed that the fruits will be ready for harvest about three months after flowering.
maintenance
Of course, the right care is important so that the nectarine tree blooms at all, so that it can later bear ripe fruit. Because it can also happen that a flower produces fruit that does not ripen due to poor care. Therefore, when caring for a bountiful harvest, the main thing to pay attention to is the following:
- correct, sunny and bright location
- enough water and fertilizer
- the right cut
A nectarine tree that is not properly cared for will usually not bear any fruit for a successful harvest. If there is a lack of water, for example, the fruits hanging on the tree remain hard and are not edible. With a lack of light, on the other hand, the fruits ripen and become soft, but unfortunately often remain tasteless.
First harvest
Nectarines can be harvested relatively quickly after planting the tree. Young trees are already bearing one or the other fruit. In addition, these fruit trees are very fast-growing specimens, so that a rich harvest can be expected just a few years after cultivation:
- no fruit in the cultivation year
- in the second year it depends on the variety
- from the third year every tree blooms
- isolated fruits may appear
- Expect more fruit every year
- Proper maintenance is the most important thing here
Best harvest time
You can tell when the nectarines are ripe with a simple pressure test to be found out. This is necessary because the fruits ripen differently in the local latitudes and a specific date for a harvest cannot be given here. Because the best harvest time for your own nectarines depends on the following factors:
- duration of winter
- when did the first flowers appear?
- Fruits about three months after flowering
- Amount of sunny days in spring/summer
- The sun supports faster ripening
- late harvest in rainy summers
- from July in warm climates
- until September in colder zones
The prevailing climate is important for the ripening of the fruit. Therefore, the time for harvesting can also vary from year to year by up to more than a month. Because in one year the winter is longer, in the other it is shorter. However, the flowering time also depends on this and the time in which the tasty fruits form.
recognize maturity
In order to be able to harvest the fruits when they are ripe, a pressure test can be carried out with the hands. But the appearance of the fruit can often tell whether they are ripe enough for harvest. The ripeness of the nectarines can be recognized as follows:
- color of the fruit
- varies depending on the variety
- inquire when purchasing the tree
- Fruit yields slightly under pressure
Not all fruits are ripe enough for a harvest at the same time. There can be a week or two or even more between the first and the last harvest. In addition, it depends on the variety, because not all nectarine varieties ripen equally well in these latitudes. When buying, it is therefore important to inquire carefully.
Harvest when needed
If you don’t want to cook jam or juice or otherwise process the fruit, you should always harvest when needed. Ripe nectarines taste best when eaten straight from the tree. Of course, they can also be stored for a few days up to a few weeks. However, if there is the possibility of only taking a few fruits a day during the harvest, this will show in the taste. Most varieties usually ripen over several weeks, so that ripe fruit can be harvested from the tree straight into your mouth every day for up to three weeks.
