Lifestyle

Texas Peaches Made It Through the Tough Weather

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Tony Maples Photography

 

Efurd Orchards in Pittsburg, Texas is proud to call this year’s crop of peaches a victory despite weather worries. Experts were very concerned that the abnormally warm East Texas weather in February paired with heavy rains this year would hurt the peach crops. Yet, the 18,000 trees in Efurd Orchards persevered.

Brantly Efurd, the head of Efurd Orchards’ wholesale division, told the Longview News-Journal that, “Making sure the peaches got a certain amount of cold hours was our biggest worry, but they seem to have gotten enough chill hours.” Chill hours in the winter assist the growth of the peaches in spring. The peach trees need at least 150 hours (and up to 1,000) at below 45 degrees fahrenheit. This February’s strange Texas weather only got the peaches their minimum amount of chilling.

Then this spring, the plentiful rains brought about an ideal environment for diseases, yet through it all, the trees remained strong. Last year’s rains, on the other hand, were more difficult for Efurd Orchards, and they had to remove several trees. Thankfully, in 2016 all of the trees made it through and the vast majority of the peaches are perfect for consumption! Now, do you want one scoop of ice cream or two with your peach cobbler?