Hey, I’m Desmond Layne, Peach Specialist at Clemson University. Welcome to the Clemson Tiger Peach Network.
Welcome back to “Everything About Peaches”. Today is August 10, 2011 and we’re here at my variety test block at James Cooley’s farm in Chesnee, South Carolina. Last week, we featured Cresthaven. Cresthaven is a delicious peach. Its been around for a long time. Its got yellow flesh, normal acidity, a good tangy taste to it. This week we’re featuring “Peach Pick” #14 for South Carolina – Early Augustprince.
In our Clemson University research trials over the last several years, the performance of Early Augustprince has been excellent. Early Augustprince was developed by the United States Department of Agriculture in Byron, Georgia. The breeder was Dr. Dick Okie. Early Augustprince is a yellow, melting flesh type that is also a freestone. Its got that traditional acidic tang that we associate with a Southern peach. It was released to the public in 2006. Because it is a public release, you can freely propagate it. We typically harvest it here in the first two weeks of August depending on where you are located in the state.
Early Augustprince is a consistently large peach averaging from 3 – 3 1/4 inches in diameter. It has a very nice, uniform round shape, a nice yellow background color and red overcolor or blush. When you cut through the skin into the flesh, you can see that it has beautiful yellow flesh. Look at that! Occasionally, at the pit there may be some red pigmentation and that’s not a problem. That red pigmentation is anthocyanin pigments and these are antioxidants which is a health benefit for you.
If you remember last week, Cresthaven was a delicious peach. Let’s see how Early Augustprince tastes. Wow! This baby could give Winblo a run for the money! Sweet, juicy, tangy. Now that’s what we’re looking for in an awesome South Carolina peach!
Why don’t you join us next week when we’ll feature another “Peach Pick for South Carolina” where the peaches don’t taste like cardboard.
You know sometimes I make comments in these videos and perhaps some folks might be offended. I’m sorry, but the truth hurts. South Carolina peaches are fabulous! Being a peach specialist in South Carolina is a rough job but I’m glad that I get the chance to do it!
To get my latest information on peaches, you can follow me on Twitter at http://twitter.com/PeachDoctor. For more educational videos and information about peaches, you can visit my “Everything About Peaches” website at http://www.clemson.edu/peach. And if you would like to read my columns for the American Fruit Grower magazine, you can visit their website at http://www.growingproduce.com.
