Avalon Pride is an early-season yellow-fleshed peach with a good flavour. It is one of the most resistant varieties to peach-leaf curl, a fungal infection which is endemic in many parts of Europe.
Pick the fruits when they are still firm and allow to ripen indoors.
Like many peaches Avalon Pride has very attractive pink blossom.
Avalon Pride is well suited to the climate of northern Europe, and has some tolerance of early frosts. For best results it should be planted in a sheltered position in full sun.
Although sometimes promoted as resistant to peach-leaf curl, it is by no means disease-proof, just a bit less susceptible than other varieties. It should therefore be protected from infection in late winter / early spring - covering the tree with a fleece is a good method.
Avalon Pride was discovered as a chance seedling growing near Seattle, USA in the 1990s.
Peaches are a luxurious fruit originating in the Far East and now grown throughout warm temperate regions. Peach trees prefer a continental climate - warm summers and cold winters.
Peach trees can be grown in northern Europe but for best results grow them as fans on a south-facing wall, or in a patio container which can be moved indoors (to an unheated room or conservatory) during winter, or - ideally - under permanent cover in a greenhouse or polytunnel.
All peaches are self-fertile - but that doesn't mean they don't need pollinating, it just means you don't need another peach tree nearby to cross-pollinate with. Pollen must still be taken from one flower to the other and since peaches flower very early in the season you can't always rely on pollinating insects to be out and about.
Whilst it is generally advisable to keep pruning of all stone fruit to a minimum, regular pruning is quite important with peaches. The main objective is to remove older wood and leave younger shoots - this is because peaches (and nectarines) fruit primarily on 1-year shoots (i.e. the shoots which grew the previous summer). The best time to prune is in spring.
If your peach tree sets a good crop in the spring then it is important to thin the fruitlets, otherwise you will end up with lots of small peaches with little flavour. It is worth being ruthless with the thinning because the flavour of home-grown peaches eaten straight from the tree is worth a bit of work!