Glowingstar Peach (Spring 2027)

This is our first year growing Glowingstar, so everything below is secondhand until we get more long-term data from our own mother trees.

Overview

Glowingstar is a late, large, yellow freestone peach from Michigan's Stellar series, and it's known for two things: good bud hardiness and good resistance to bacterial spot.

Origin and History

Glowingstar came out of the Stellar breeding program at Fruit Acres Farm in Coloma, Michigan, started by Jim Friday in 1982 and carried on by Annette and Randy Bjorge. It was patented in 1998 as FA 17, and the patent gives its parents as Fayette and Newhaven.

Fruit and Uses

Rutgers describes it as medium-large, round and attractive, 60 to 70% orange-scarlet red, yellow-fleshed and freestone, "firm with good flavor." The patent notes the flesh doesn't brown when cut. It ripens about three to four weeks after Redhaven.

Growth Habit and Spacing

Ours are on Krymsk 86, which makes a tree around 15 feet here. Plan on about 15 feet between trees, 12 if you prune hard or 18 with less pruning. Rutgers calls the tree vigorous, spreading and productive. Four separate sources, including Rutgers and the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, rate it resistant or tolerant to bacterial spot.

Pollination

Glowingstar is self-fertile, so one tree will set fruit.

Cold Hardiness

University of Maine Extension names Glowingstar among the newer varieties with good bud hardiness, and a Michigan State peach specialist called it "attractive, hardy." We haven't found an actual temperature it's survived, though. We've listed it at 4b for now as an estimate, and we'll update it once we've wintered our own trees.

Photo credit: “Glowing Star-8089” by Jackson's Orchard, via Flickr, licensed under CC BY 2.0.