How to Start a Red Leaf Dwarf Peach Tree

Growing a Seedling

• A peach seed is not difficult to germinate and often found sprouting in a compost pile. Any seedling discovered in such a place could be transplanted to a pot and used for grafting; otherwise, a seed needs to be collected from the center of a peach fruit. Autumn is the best time to obtain a peach seed from a fruit. Plant the seed about 2 inches deep in potting soil in the center of 5-gallon pot, and leave the pot outside over winter. A peach seed needs to experience several months of cold weather in order to germinate. Watch for the seedling to emerge above the soil in early spring.

  An alternative exists to planting a peach seed in a pot and leaving it outdoors for winter. The process of breaking dormancy through exposure to cold temperatures -- known as cold stratification -- can be simulated by putting the seed in a refrigerator for about three months. Put the seed in a sealed plastic bag containing lightly moist sand or sawdust to store it in the refrigerator. The seed should sprout readily when planted in a pot in spring and watered for several weeks.

Grafting the Seedling

• Early summer is the ideal time to graft a peach tree. The seedling's rootstock should be at least 3/8 inch in diameter by then, which is a perfect size for grafting. Slice a bud from a dwarf, red-leaf peach tree, cut a T-shaped slot in the seedling's bark and slide the bud into the T-shaped slot. A sharp grafting knife is helpful for making a clean, straight cut when removing the bud; the goal is to remove a sliver about the thickness of a potato chip. The inner bark layer of the bud and the seedling need to be kept in good contact. So use grafting tape to wrap their joint tightly, allowing the two pieces to fuse. The resulting tree will be genetically identical to the tree from which the bud was taken.

Caring for the Grafted Tree

• It should be apparent within two weeks whether or not the graft is successful. The bud still will be plump and green if the graft succeeded. If the bud appears black and shriveled, the graft did not take, but another attempt can be made elsewhere on the seedling. Once the graft union has been made, which means the two grafted pieces have fused, then the grafting tape can be removed and the portion of the seedling above the graft can be cut off. Doing so causes the bud to sprout. During that time, keep the tree out of hot, afternoon sunlight, and water its potting soil whenever the top 1/2 of the soil becomes dry. Remove all growth that occurs below the graft union.

Establishing the Tree in the Landscape

• The grafted peach tree will be ready to plant in its permanent location the following spring. A dwarf, red-leaf peach needs a location that receives a minimum of six hours of direct sunlight each day. Excellent soil drainage is critical to getting the tree established, though the tree can be grown in a pot, where good drainage is more assured. The tree grow will slowly to about 5 feet tall and wide in five years. Spread 1 cup of 10-10-10 fertilizer over a 3-foot-diameter area around the tree's trunk one month after planting to get it off to a good start. In late summer, a 1/2 cup of calcium nitrate can be applied over the same area.