Fruit · Rosaceae
When to plant nectarines
A peach without the fuzz, and slightly more demanding for it - the smooth skin is more easily marked by rain, wind and insects.
First worthwhile crop
Year 3
After planting, not after sowing.
Hardy in USDA zones
5b to 9a
Winter cold sets the limit here, not the calendar.
Frost tolerance
Hardy
How much cold the plant itself will take.
Those weeks become real dates once you name a place.
Timing, in frost-relative terms
Nothing about a standing crop is sown to a calendar. Once planted, nectarines stay in the ground for years, so the question is not when to sow but whether your winter is survivable and your planting window is open. Both answers come from your frost dates.
- Expect a first worthwhile crop in year 3 after planting.
- Needs roughly 600 chill hours below 7.2°C (45°F)45°F (7.2°C) over winter to set fruit, which rules out the warmest climates.
- Hardy in USDA zones 5b–9a.
Frost tolerance
Identical to peach in hardiness and in the early-flowering problem that goes with it.
Classified as hardy.