Harvester

Peach

Size

Medium to large (~2-3 in.)

Shape

Round

Flavor

Sweet, with a honeyed core and lively edge

Texture

Freestone (one source calls it semi-freestone); firm yellow flesh with red near the pit

Ripening window

Late June - early July (~3 weeks ahead of Elberta); one source lists late Aug/early Sep, but that appears to be an outlier

Best uses

Fresh eating, canning, baking, freezing - especially good for bulk canning due to clean pit separation

Pollination

Self-fertile - no pollinator needed, though yields improve with a second tree nearby

Tree size

10-15 ft tall and wide (semi-dwarf); 8-10 ft as dwarf; space 18-20 ft apart

Notes

Released 1973 by the Louisiana Agricultural Experiment Station (LSU AgCenter), bred for northern Louisiana and Gulf South heat/humidity - not a Texas A&M release despite being widely grown and AgriLife-recommended across Texas. Chill requirement 750 hours, zones 5-9 - a solid, unambiguous fit for zone 8a. Good to high resistance to bacterial spot and moderate resistance to brown rot - one of the stronger disease-resistance profiles in this group for Texas' humid-summer pressure. Susceptible to peach tree borers and aphids; peach leaf curl resistance not documented. Very high yielding, 150-250+ lb/year at maturity.