Winter and early spring weather related to chill hours has led to mixed results for Texas peach producers, according to Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service experts. Parts of the state are reporting good fruit sets despite drought, while other areas are reporting late freeze damage and inadequate chill hours that have cut into potential peach yields.
Weather conditions like drought and insufficient chill hours worked against fruit tree production in the Hill Country this winter. By traditional measurements, trees should receive around 830 hours of chilling. But the response from trees indicates they received around 530 chill hours.
Tree response to this season’s chill hours in the Hill Country has been terrible. Trees were slow to leaf out and, while blooms looked normal, Kamas said trees shed them, which is a sign of incomplete bud differentiation. Some fruit is forming, but Kamas said he was uncertain whether they would progress or fall off.
Source: agrilifetoday.tamu.edu