British Columbia: Peach Trees

We live in the Duncan/Maple Bay area of Vancouver Island and would like to buy/plant a peach tree. We have been told it needs to be planted close to a house, but exactly how close do we plant it? How big do these trees grow (sorry, I'm a transplanted prairie girl). Any advice would be much appreciated.

 

Peach trees will benefit from being out of the rain, but that really isn't practical in most situations. Planting 18 inches away from a south wall with an overhang works, but if you do this you should really train the tree as an espalier (that is, tie the branches to a trellis in a fan shape). This is a high maintance practice however, and the tree will need regular attention - both pruning and watering. And it doesn't look like a tree then, just some sort of lame looking vine.

However, if you have a well sheltered area with full sun, there is no need to keep the tree under cover if you choose a good variety. Pacific Gold and Frost peaches grow well on the west coast. That way the tree needs minimal pruning and looks like a tree.

Some leaf curl is still to be expected, so spray in winter with a combination of dormant oil and lime sulfur (its safe and pseudo organic, that is, the ingredients are "natural"). But only do this when the tree is dormant. Then in spring, if you see leaf curl, pull off and destroy the affected leaves (dont leave them lying on the ground near the tree).

I have a frost peach and a hardy-red nectarine planted in an open location, with good south exposure, on SaltSpring Island. Some years leaf curl is a problem and some years not.

 

Thank you so much for your advice!

 

How is your peach tree doing? I have one in full sun sheltered by a 5 foot fence on three sides.
I have a big battle with leaf curl and took them off and burned them/ It seemed like half the leaves
on the tree but never the less I got 48 little peaches started and on advice of an arborist removed
24 of them . I got 20 beautiful blemish free large peaches in the end. I sprayed with copper sulfate before the fruit
began forming and then the weather got dry and no further problems.
Also from the prairies and loving growing plums, apples , pears, starting some kiwi and plum-cherries.
Fagan