How Long Do Peach Trees Live?

Peach trees are enjoyed in gardens and landscapes for their beauty and deliciously sweet fruit. Peach tree owners who want to enjoy the trees for many years select them based on their quality and disease resistance. Through careful soil and tree maintenance, peach trees can live for many years.

Peach trees that grow in cooler climates usually live for about 10 years. In warmer climates, the trees can live much longer. With proper pruning, watering and fertilizing, peach trees have lived for more than 50 years.

Peach trees thrive very well in a wide range of soil types, ranging from a high-sand content to a high-clay content, with a pH range of 6 to 6.5. They, however, do not do so well in soil that is constantly wet. Keeping them out of constantly wet soil is important for promoting the health and longevity for your peach tree.

Pruning is also necessary to maintain peach tree health and promote a long life span for the tree. Peach trees are typically pruned in the open vase form, where there aren't any branches growing at the center top of the tree.

Proper watering prevents tree dehydration, especially in the hot, dry days of the summer. It is also important to water the tree just before the peaches are harvested, to yield large fruit. On the contrary, once fall begins, the tree should not be watered because it will make it vulnerable during the winter, shortening the lifespan of the peach tree.

Disease prevention is also important to extend the life of the peach tree. Some common diseases include cankers, which infect the bark of the tree, brown rot, which invades the peach blossoms and fruit, and bacterial spots that form spots on the fruit, leaves and smaller branches. Bacterial spots damage the fruit by forming lesions that destroy the crop. Cankers are controlled by pruning and the other diseases are managed by fungicides and tree sprays.