Question
Hello Tom,

I live in New Brunswick Canada and am wondering if there is anyway I can grow nectarines indoors or outdoors with our harsh winter climate.

Answer
Hi Megan,
Thanx for your question. I have been to New Brunswick several times and it is a very beautiful place.

According to Agriculture Canada, peaches and nectarines are at their northern limit in Canada.  There are some peach growers in Ontario, British Columbia and Nova Scotia.  They grow here in Kansas where I'm from.  Winters can get pretty cold here but it's not so much the cold winter that is a problem, the problem is usually a late spring freeze that kills the flowers while the tree is in bloom which results in no fruit!  I know there are peach and nectarine trees rated for the northern United States such as Michigan and New York state which both have harsh winter climates.  One of the things about growing Prunus (the species of nectarines, peaches, apricots and almonds) is if one grows them close to a large body of water one will have better fruiting success.  This is because large bodies of water tend to regulate climates that would otherwise be bitterly cold.

I checked on Agriculture Canada and I was not successful in finding much about nectarine growing in New Brunswick.  I checked with the New Brunswick government but the search engine (I'm sorry to say.) was awful - maybe it was just today - but it did not respond to my inquiries.  I found Horticulture Nova Scotia which may be able to help you...  http://www.hortns.com/

Also, take a visit to nurseries in and around St. Johns and other larger towns in New Brunswick and inquire as to what cultivars they might offer for hardier peach and nectarine trees.  Growing one from seed?  I do not recommend.  Too much time to grow between germination and fruiting (5-7 years) and it probably won't be hardy.

I hope this helps.  Here's the link to Agriculture Canada.  Maybe you'll do better than I did!

http://www.agr.gc.ca/

Tom