Botanical name: Prunus persica "Avalon Pride"
Ideal location & conditions: Full sun and sheltered position
Size after 5 years: 1.5m x 1m
Soil: Soil based compost with added grit.
Flowering colour: Mid Pink
Flowering period: March
Fruit harvest period: Late August
What do a Brown Bear, an English lady living in Washington State and a wild peach tree all have in common?? Avalon Pride - that’s what!
We need to go back to the 1970's where a lovely English lady, Margaret Proud, was living in the state of Washington, in the USA. Margaret had set up home in a rural area with forest adjoining her property. Whilst growing up in England, she had always been a keen gardener and had learnt a great deal from her father. It was this knowledge that led her to notice a wild peach tree growing at the very edge of the forest which never seemed to suffer from the disease, Peach Leaf Curl.
Having grown peaches in England, Margaret was only too aware of the difficulties of growing them successfully. The damage that Peach Leaf Curl inflicted upon peach trees, often defoliates them almost completely during the spring and summer months.
Margaret kept an eye on this seedling peach tree for a few years, realising that this was something special. Whilst Margaret was contemplating exactly how she should bring this tree to the attention of fruit growers in America, one night a Brown Bear decided that Peach was definitely on the menu for his supper and in his efforts to reach and eat every peach on this particular tree, Brown Bear completely destroyed it in his enthusiasm. However, Margaret acted very swiftly; she found some shoots which were suitable for propagation and took them to a local nursery. That nursery raised ten trees, five of which were sent to the local University for trials. After several years of trialling, it became recognised that this peach was special in its resistance to the fungal disease, Peach Leaf Curl - the first time this had ever been recorded. Margaret Proud decided to commercialise the variety and gave it the name Avalon Pride. Avalon was the name of house where she grew up in the West Country.
Our very own Will met with Margaret back in the Nineties and was given the rights to propagate trees of Avalon Pride in the UK. It remains today one of the most resistant varieties to Peach Leaf Curl and gives the opportunity to grow wonderful peach fruits in our UK conditions.
Grow a piece of horticultural history in your garden but do be careful of the Bears. They are everywhere you know!