When summer arrives in Georgia, something magical happens in orchards across the state. Juicy, sweet peaches start ripening on the trees, ready to be picked and enjoyed. Georgia is nicknamed ‘The Peach State’ for good reason – these fruits aren’t just delicious, they’re part of Southern culture and history. Pack your bags and hit the road to discover these peachy treasures!
1. The Big Peach Festival: A Juicy Celebration
“We’re baking the world’s largest peach cobbler today!” announces an excited volunteer as crowds gather at the Georgia Peach Festival. This annual celebration splits its time between the towns of Byron and Fort Valley, paying homage to the state’s beloved fruit.
Festival-goers fan themselves in the summer heat while watching the famous cobbler being assembled in a 5×11 foot pan. The recipe calls for 75 gallons of peaches and enough butter to make your cardiologist nervous. Music floats through the air as local bands play Southern classics.
Beyond the giant dessert, the festival features parades, a peach queen contest, and cooking competitions. Families spread picnic blankets under shade trees, enjoying sweet tea and peach-flavored everything. Mark your calendar for June when this peachy party takes over the towns.
2. Dickey Farms: Historic Peach Haven
The wooden floorboards of Dickey Farms’ packing house creak with over a century of history. Established in 1897, this Musella treasure stands as Georgia’s oldest continuously operating peach packinghouse. Rocking chairs line the wraparound porch, inviting visitors to sit a spell while enjoying peach ice cream.
Inside, workers sort peaches on the original belt system as they’ve done for generations. The rhythmic thump of fruit being packed creates a soothing soundtrack. Families watch in fascination as peaches journey from tree to box right before their eyes.
The market brims with peachy treasures – jams, salsas, and fresh fruit by the basket. A hidden gem for photographers, the farm’s vintage equipment and weathered barn doors provide perfect backdrops for capturing Southern nostalgia. Fourth and fifth-generation family members still run this beloved institution.
3. Lane Southern Orchards: Peach Paradise
Standing amid 6,000 acres of peach trees at Lane Southern Orchards feels like stepping into a fragrant dream. Located in Fort Valley, this family-owned farm has been growing Georgia’s famous fruit since 1908. The sweet smell of ripening peaches fills the air as you wander through the orchard.
Visitors can climb aboard the open-air farm tour, watching workers carefully pick each peach by hand. Children squeal with delight at seeing fruit plucked straight from branches. The on-site market offers everything from fresh peaches to homemade ice cream.
Don’t miss their legendary peach cobbler – served warm with a scoop of peach ice cream melting on top. Time your visit for mid-June through early August when the orchards burst with peak-season fruit.
4. Jaemor Farms: Roadside Peach Heaven
Cars pull off Highway 365 near Alto as travelers spot the red barn roof of Jaemor Farms in the distance. This roadside market has been a mandatory pit stop for Georgia travelers since 1912. The scent of just-baked peach fried pies greets you before you even reach the door.
Summer brings a cornucopia of peach varieties – from fuzzy Elbertas to sweet Georgia Belles. Farmers with sun-weathered faces happily explain the difference between clingstone and freestone varieties to curious visitors. Children press their faces against the bakery case, eyeing peach fritters and cobbler.
Beyond fresh fruit, the market offers homemade peach ice cream that locals drive miles to enjoy. The creamy, peachy goodness melts quickly in summer heat, so eat fast! U-pick opportunities let families experience the joy of harvesting their own sun-warmed fruit straight from the branch.
5. Pearson Farm: Peach Perfection
“My great-grandfather planted these first trees,” explains Al Pearson as he walks between rows of peach trees at Pearson Farm in Fort Valley. Five generations of farming expertise create what many consider
Georgia’s finest peaches. The rich red clay soil gives these fruits their distinctive sweetness and aroma.
Unlike massive commercial operations, Pearson’s focuses on quality over quantity. Each peach ripens on the tree until the perfect moment before careful hand-picking. Their mail-order peaches have developed a cult following, with customers setting calendar reminders for the season’s first shipment.
The farm store offers a treasure trove of peachy delights – from preserves to peach butter. Did you know they also grow exceptional pecans? When peach season ends, their nutty crop takes center stage. Time your visit for the Pearson Farm Peach Festival in June to experience peach-picking demonstrations and cooking classes.
6. Taylor Orchards: Modern Growth in the Peach Belt
In Georgia’s Peach Belt, Taylor Orchards in Reynolds is a notable destination. It began with just 200 acres of peach trees and today cultivates over 3,600 acres across multiple varieties. The orchard offers self-guided tours, a gift shop, and tastings of fresh peaches and peach-based desserts.
Its location in the heart of Georgia’s peach country gives it ideal conditions – well-drained soil, warm days, cool nights, and reliable summer sun. The Wainwright family has maintained operations across several generations, preserving both traditional cultivation methods and modern improvements.
Visitors often combine a stop there with tours of nearby orchards such as Lane Southern or Pearson. Taylor Orchards helps strengthen agritourism in Georgia by hosting seasonal events and providing educational materials about peach cultivation, orchard care, and seasonal fruiting cycles.
7. The Elberta Peach: Georgia’s Sweet Legacy
The rise and legacy of the Elberta peach is central to Georgia’s peach identity. In the late 19th century, Samuel H. Rumph of Marshallville developed and named this variety after his wife, selecting for sweet flavor, firm flesh, and shipping resilience.
The Elberta became widely planted and commercially successful, fueling a “Georgia peach boom.” Over time, newer cultivars with better disease resistance and extended seasonal windows have supplemented or replaced Elberta in many orchards, but its historical role remains iconic.
Today Georgia grows more than 40 commercial peach varieties derived from breeding programs that trace back to Rumph’s efforts. Georgia’s climate permits a long peach season – often 16 weeks, from mid-May through August in central Georgia.
8. Climate and Cultivation: Challenges for Modern Growers
In recent years, climate pressures have started to reshape Georgia’s peach industry. Late frosts and unpredictable rainfall pose risks to blossoms and developing fruit; some farms report up to 30 % potential yield loss in adverse years.
Warmer winters can reduce “chill hours,” the cold period peach trees need before budding, undermining fruit set in subsequent seasons. To counter these effects, growers employ adaptive strategies: precision irrigation systems, soil-moisture sensors, micro-sprinklers, and selective thinning to maintain fruit quality.
In 2025, favorable chill conditions were reported early in the season, prompting growers to thin fruit to ensure size and sugar concentration. Some farms also trial heat-tolerant cultivars and improved fungicide regimes to mitigate disease stress from wetter weather.
9. Georgia Peach Truck: Taking Orchard Flavor on the Road
The Georgia Peach Truck is a modern way to bring fresh peaches to markets and road trips across the East Coast. In 2025, it continues operating as a farm-to-street fruit truck, delivering boxes of peaches from Dickey Farms in Musella and promoting mail-order fresh fruit for those outside Georgia.
The truck features weekly stops in host towns where customers pick up pre-orders; walk-up sales may not always suffice, so ordering in advance is advised. Each box contains around 50–65 peaches, shifting from clingstone varieties early to freestone later in the season.
The service blends agritourism with logistics, extending peach season beyond local markets and engaging urban consumers in Georgia’s orchard cycle. It also builds brand awareness for participating growers and underscores how distribution innovations can help small farms reach broader audiences.
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