Indian Free Peach Harvest: One for Each Hand
In a month where plump pumpkins take center stage, green tomatoes consume counter space faster than we consume them, and wet leaves hitch a ride on unsuspecting soles, I awaited the finale of one of summer’s finest players, my Indian Free peach tree.
Between spring rains, high winds, lowly squirrels, unfailing gravity and deer that were anything but, only two peaches remained to bless the tree. Not wishing to tempt fate, or ignore the skills of said squirrels, I proudly picked the peaches and rushed to the kitchen before the deer got wind.
I let the peaches ripen under a light cloth for a few days, as Indian Free peaches while delectable ripe, will turn your mouth inside out if not. It’s a pucker worthy of the lime.
Days later, they did not disappoint, and were a fitting farewell to a summer favorite with its foothold in fall.
What I was blogging about a year ago: Blacktail Mountain: Hot Watermelon for a Cool Climate.
Those are beautifully colored.
Tom:
Those look like the Indian Free and not the Indian Blood this year. Could you tell, was the taste any different this year?
Steve
Steve the taste as a little tarter, that is, sweet but with a little sharper aftertaste like the kind of tartness of a raspberry or blackberry that’s a day or two from ripeness. I may have picked these a bit early but I had too as the squirrels had discovered them.
Perfect…love the white blush – talk about Community supported agriculture!
I have this peach. It has been two years that I have been trying to identify the variety. It was given to me by a man who went to the woods and uprooted it for me. I’ve had it, now, for fifteen years.
It has a taste of raspberry and is sweet. I was told recently that it was a Cherokee Peach. I have heard it called an Indian Blood Cling.
Mine looks more like the top picture on the pretty plate.
Patty I have a couple friends from France who say that type of peach is called a vineyard peach or Vigne de Peche (oo-la-la is optional).
When I searched for that on google images, it returned peaches very much like you and I have. Peaches unlike most fruits have seeds that are true to the parent. So if you want more, save the seeds and plant them. Patty Peachseed has a real ring to it.
[…] One year ago: Two Peaches Are Better Than One […]
[…] out this variety to us. Ever since reading his posts about ‘Indian Free’ here and here, we’ve had a slight touch of peach envy. ‘Indian Free’ is a freestone white […]
The color of your peach is awesome! Let me know if you would be willing to sell or trade some of the peach pits.
No problem John, will do, but I am fearful our heavy spring rains put a dent on the pollination. The trees are very sparsely fruited. I’ll try to beat the squirrels for the fruit and the pits.
I am debating between planting a Loring, the great peach of my childhood on the East Coast, or an Indian Free. I have Babcock, August Pride (which I think is a Loring descendant and partially overlaps with Loring harvest time) and Tropic Snow.
A ripe Loring absolutely drips with juice. Does an Indian Free?
Alison, an Indian Free peach is not necessarily like a regular peach. The flesh is firm and not that juicy but has a tart aftertaste. It’s good but doesn’t have the true peachy peach flavor.