Cold damage to peaches not as bad in middle Georgia

ALBANY - Freezing temperatures have devastated the south Georgia peach crop, but the damage may not be as severe in middle Georgia, where the bulk of the state&#39;s peaches are grown. <br> <br> John DeWitt, a grower who has 450 acres of peach trees in the Brooks County town of Barney, near Valdosta, says he lost 60 percent of his crop when temperatures dipped into the teens over the weekend and into the 20s this morning. <br> <br> Kathy Taylor, the Georgia Extension Service&#39;s stone fruit specialist in Byron, said south Georgia growers lost 50 to 70 percent of their crop in a freeze last week. <br> <br> It&#39;s still too early to determine the impact in middle Georgia, where the temperature dipped to 19 degrees in one orchard. About 90 percent of the state&#39;s peaches are grown in middle Georgia, near Macon, Fort Valley and Byron. <br> <br> The south Georgia peaches were more vulnerable because they were further along in their growth. <br> <br> In middle Georgia, the fruit was in good shape through the weekend and the freezing temperatures had helped to thin some of the buds. Peach trees have to be thinned to improve the quality of the fruit. <br> <br> Taylor said middle Georgia growers won&#39;t know whether the storm caused significant damage until Wednesday or Thursday.

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