For what it's worth, I have a five year old Titan almond on Lovell rootstock in zone 7a, coastal/urban Boston. It's 16' from a red haven peach, same age, that produces tons of fruit every year, and according to Raintree Nursery should be enough to pollinate it. I don't water either tree - we get plenty of rain up here. They flower at the same time, so I don't think late frosts are the problem. The almond is vigorous and healthy, has loads of flowers every year, but sets very little fruit. Last year I got exactly three almonds from it. This year I can only see two (they are hard to see in the foliage because they stay green, instead of turning orange like a peach). On the bright side, the almonds were a good size, and delicious. Very much like a store-bough almond. There is a bit of borer damage at the trunk, but no bugs in the nuts, they were perfect, with only occasional spraying (0-2x per year) based on Michael Phillip's advice. I'd be interested in other first-hand accounts of almond-growing attempts up north.
