Florida Breeding Seeks Regionally-Adapted Peach Rootstocks

University of Florida researchers are getting to the root of a problem faced by peach growers in the state. Their problem: The tree roots themselves, or the lack thereof.

With only one major rootstock available for grafting to peach-bearing cultivars, disease issues are nearly unavoidable for Florida growers, who have about 2,000 acres planted with peach trees meant to supply fresh fruit sales March through May.

So, work goes on at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) where fruit tree breeders and continue to look for something better.

In the current state of affairs, “we can only go up,” said José Chaparro, UF/IFAS horticultural sciences department associate professor of fruit tree breeding and genetics.

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