Pollination Basics

• Horticulturalists generally refer to two types of pollination needs required by trees. Trees that require cross-pollination will only produce fruit if pollinated by a different but compatible cultivar, which can create challenges for the home fruit grower. Self-pollinating or self-fruitful trees, on the other hand, do not need another tree to meet their pollination needs and can pollinate themselves. Peach trees fall into the latter category and are self-fruitful.
  
  

Peach Pollination

• Because peaches are self-fruitful, you do not need to worry about compatible cultivars or even need to plant a second tree. Furthermore, although some self-fruitful trees produce more abundant crops when cross-pollinated, this is not true of peaches. With proper care, a single tree will produce enough peaches for a family to use, according to the Ohio State University Extension. The extension recommends planting multiple trees -- not for pollination purposes but to extend the harvest season.
  
  

Exceptions

• A handful of peach cultivars prove an exception to the rule that peaches self-pollinate and can produce abundant yields from their own pollen. J.H. Hale, Earlihale, Hal-Berta, Candoka, Marsun and Mikado are not self-fruitful, and you will need to plant a second tree to pollinate these trees. Apricots -- closely related to peaches and often considered as peaches -- are also self-fruitful except for the Riland, Perfection and Rival cultivars.
  
  

Choosing Cultivars for Pollination

• If you decide to plant a cultivar that requires cross-pollination, you do not need to consider whether the resulting fruit will be white or yellow. All peaches effectively cross-pollinate one another, with one exception: Elberta will not pollinate the self-unfruitful J.H. Hale cultivar. Both Elberta and J.H. Hale are yellow peaches.
  
  Instead of looking at fruit color when choosing a compatible pollinator for a tree like J.H. Hale, consider blossom time. There must be some overlap when blossoms are open on both trees in order for cross-pollination to work. When you purchase the tree, the nursery should be able to provide you with this information. The two trees should be located no more than 100 feet from each other for cross-pollination to occur. (See References 2 and 4)