As long as I can remember Georgia has been known as the Peach State.
The signs that welcome you to Georgia let you know. Anyone who has been to Atlanta has been to Peachtree Plaza. Heck, one of the state's favorite sons, baseball Hall of Famer Ty Cobb is the "Georgia Peach". They host college football's Peach Bowl.
But for decades now folks in South Carolina have been saying "hold your horses" to their friends across the border in Georgia.
From the department of I Did Not Know, South Carolina grows more peaches than the Peach State. In fact, the largest peach farm in S.C. grows almost as many peaches as the entire state of Georgia. BTW, California is actually the Peach king producing upwards of 6 times as many peaches as Georgia and South Carolina combined. Once again, I did not know.
Back to the battle pitting South Carolina against Georgia. Isn't South Carolina the Palmetto State?
Ask any South Carolinian and they'll tell you their peaches taste second to none. No surprise, you'll get the same answer from any Georgian.
Either way, I grew up in Ohio, you know the Buckeye State. I can tell you first hand a peach tastes a lot better than a buckeye.
Folks in South Carolina say there is a clear recipe that makes peaches from their state so good. They point to cool winters. They point to long hot summers with enough rainfall to help the peaches grow. They also say the soil in S.C. helps make those peaches from the Palmetto State taste so good.
Don't just take it from me. Just ask Desmond Layne. He's Clemson's own Dr. Peach. You see he is an Associate Professor of Pomology & Extension Tree Fruit Specialist at Clemson University.
He is the "go to guy" when it comes to peaches. Hence the nickname Dr. Peach. I wonder if the University of Georgia has a Dr. Peach?
South Carolina and Georgia peaches are awesome simply as a hand fruit. Or in a bowl with cream or in peach cobbler.
But have you ever had a scoop of Carolina peach ice cream? How about the peach ice cream students make and sell on campus at Clemson? Along with all the mouth watering peaches his family has grown for decades now, Mr. Ben Smith sells a pretty mean scoop (or two) of peach ice cream at the Peach Tree in York, SC.
Penn State faithful swear by the Peachy Paterno ice cream that they sell on campus in Happy Valley at the Berkey Creamery.
So as National Peach Month comes to a close, don't despair. Mr Ben just told me it's time now for one of his favorite variety of peaches in South Carolina. He calls it the Big Red!
You know where I'll be making a stop on my next trip to South Carolina this fall!
Boy I'm glad my son goes to Clemson.