A friend purchased a dwarf peach tree from Home Depot. The tree already had fruit on it. This spring the tree never bloomed but the foliage is beautiful and very full. Why didn't it bloom and because it didn't bloom this year will it ever bloom again?
Peaches are tough to grow in the Vancouver area. Much winter rain encourages the proliferation of fungus diseases, particularly peach leaf curl, but also mildew and rust. Bacterial blight (not a fungus) is a serious problem in some areas, causing branch dieback. Low spring temperatures conspire against flower expansion and the presence of bees --although most peaches do not require a pollenizer (such as apples do) the presence of pollinating bees probably helps to set fruit. Low summer temperatures diminish the tree's ability to set flower buds. Another problem that may be encountered in your area (where are you writing from?) is the peach tree borer, but healthy, vigorous trees are seldom attacked. The best peaches are arguably from warm places like Georgia (the state in the southern US). Acceptable peaches can be grown elsewhere, but in wet areas like the Pacific Coast, we have to grow peaches under cover for increased ripening and protection from rain. Make sure the peach is planted in rich soil, with good drainage, in the sun.
