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Origins and History of Peach Trees
Historical information on clingstone peach trees, freestone peach trees and
the cultivars Belle of Georgia, Elberta, Hale Haven, Harvester, Indian Blood
Cling and others
History of Peach Trees, Prunus Persica
Copyright © 2007 Patrick Malcolm
Peach trees, Prunus persica, are originally believed to have come
from China to the Mideast through the trade routes known to
extend to Turkey and Iran (Persia). The peach seeds could be used
to plant and grow trees throughout North Africa and Europe and
finally were introduced to America in the mid 1500's. The first
appearance of peaches in China may date back to 2000 BC.
Historians believe that peach trees were first introduced into
the colonial settlements of the United States by the French
explorers in 1562 at territories along the Gulf coastal region
near Mobile, Alabama, then by the Spaniards who established Saint
Augustine, Florida in 1565 on the Atlantic seaboard. The peach
trees were planted from peach seed imported from Europe in an
effort to establish a self sustaining, agricultural, fruit tree
product to feed the colonists. American Indians spread the
planting of the peach trees throughout vast territories by
transporting the peach seed to other tribes that lived in the
interior regions. This new crop of fruit was fast growing,
producing a delicious peach two or three years from planting. The
trees were so productive and vigorous that sometimes, widespread
impenetrable thickets became established from the peach seeds
that fell to the ground from fruit unharvested. The illusion was
formed by settlers after 1600 that the peach trees were native to
the United States, since they were so widely spread and grew so
vigorously everywhere.
William Bartram, the famous American botanist and explorer, wrote
in his book, Travels, in 1773 several accounts of his
observations of ancient peach and plum orchards growing in
Georgia, South Carolina, and Alabama. Bartram visited the ruins
of a French plantation in 1776 near Mobile, Alabama, and recorded
"I came presently to old fields, where I observed ruins of
ancient habitations, there being abundance of peach and fig trees
loaded with fruit."
Peach trees are grown primarily as a fruit tree; however, great
interest in the non-fruiting, flowering peach tree was shown by
President Thomas Jefferson who planted a double flowered tree
that spectacularly bloomed at his home in Virginia in 1805.
Flowering peach trees rate high, and desirable new cultivars of
ornamental peach trees are available for planting and flowering
with colors of white, pink, red, and peppermint (a mixture of red
and white flower petals). These flowering peach trees are sterile
in fruit production and bloom early in the spring, loaded with
large colorful clusters of single or double flowered peach
petals.
Peaches are less popular as a fresh fruit than a few years ago,
primarily because most commercial peach cultivars (varieties) are
tailored by hybridizers to grow and ship as a firm fruit. The
firmness of these peaches is important when a grower considers
shipping the peach fruit long distances, but not enough attention
has been given by plant hybridizers to saving the ancient
qualities of aroma, juiciness, flavor, and seed separation from
the pulp. Another problem damaging fresh peach sales is that the
labor hired to pick the fruit from the tree is not properly
trained nor personally concerned in the ultimate ripening of the
peach fruit into a juicy, soft, delicious, tasty peach. The
peaches are simply picked too soon and too firm to provide a
fruit product that compared to a backyard orchard, tree-ripened
delicacy that our older citizens often experienced in their
grandfather's back yard garden.
Most of the peaches grown by commercial orchards today are fruits
that are harvested while too firm with a seed that clings to the
pulp called a "clingstone" peach. The best flavored peaches
ripen soft and the seed easily separates from the edible portion,
and these are called "freestone" peaches.
Peach trees grown in the United States differ greatly from the
aggressive, disease resistant, tasty, aromatic fruits grown by
the early Americans. Over the centuries, the immune qualities of
the peach trees to insects and diseases have been bred out by
hybridizers, and these qualities have been replaced by inferior
genes that make it difficult to buy a good flavorful peach at the
store. The alternative to this problem is to buy tree ripened
soft fruit at a fruit stand, pick-your-own orchard, or to grown
your own backyard garden peaches concentrating on planting and
growing old cultivars of the non-commercial home garden types.
Peach trees in America have steadily declined in vigor in the
past 300 years, to the point that the life expectancy is only
15-20 years or less. This factor has been explained by some fruit
tree observers as due to an array of incremental factors, such as
disease and insect weakening of the tree and leaves, nematodes,
and improper soils and drainage; however, these problems
pre-existed in the environment, when peach trees were introduced
into America. The likely explanation of peach tree decline is
more probably connected to the weak gene immunity that has
appeared in peach tree hybridization focused toward commercial
tree production that ends with an early, firm peach, clingstone,
with shipping advantages to distant markets.
The peach tree grows into a handsome canopy of dark-green rich
foliage to a height of 6 to 10 feet. Most peach trees available
in the United States are adapted and grown successfully in over
30 states. The grafted semi-dwarf peach trees are self
pollinated, even before the flowers fully open, and the tree is
cold hardy to negative 20 degrees Fahrenheit; however, the red to
pink delicate flowers can be damaged by temperatures below 28
degrees Fahrenheit. Some orchardists like light frosts that will
thin the bloom set, producing larger fruit. If extremely heavy
flowering occurs, the excess flowers can be removed to 6 inch
intervals, or by a chemical thinning that results in a much more
marketable crop of fruit.
A developing peach can grow in various sizes of individual fruits
on the same tree that requires considerable grading before
marketing. The peach is covered with a characteristic fuzz that
some growers prefer to reduce or removed mechanically before
sales. A nectarine is nothing more than a fuzzless peach, even
though certain distinct cultivars of nectarines are offered. In
his classic 12 volume book of botanical insight in 1921, Luther
Burbank in Fruit Improvement believed that the peach had evolved
from a nectarine-like ancestor with the fuzz developing as a
shield of protection, unlike the fuzzless nectarine. He theorized
that the fuzz shielded the fruit from sunshine, moisture, wind,
insect, and disease damage. The nectarine, he felt, was repressed
by evolutionary restraints, because the nectarine lacked fuzz as
a protective armor. The cousin of the nectarine, the almond, was
crossed by Burbank in order to create a nectarine fruit with an
edible almond pit, thus two crops from one hybridization, a fruit
and an edible nut. Burbank also performed many interspecific
crosses of peach with nectarine. The peach is quite fragile and
subject to bruising if handled roughly.
Peach trees require a certain number of chilling hours in order
to break dormancy properly and set a good crop of fruit. During a
season most States will experience 500 chill hours in the winter;
however, in many states, like central and southern Florida, the
trees will not fruit properly unless cultivars are planted to
fulfill low chilling requirements. It is very important to plant
and grow peach trees on well drained soils. The fruit tastes
better if trees are planted in the full sun, so that the early
morning light will dry the dew on the peach leaves and fruit.
Peach trees should be planted 12-15 feet apart in rows and will
benefit by the application of lime and phosphate fertilizers
around the ground beneath the branches. Weeds will be prevented
in backyard orchards by heavily mulching, but otherwise the weeds
should be mowed or sprayed with herbicides. Several kinds of
peach varieties are usually planted to extend the availability
and ripening of the fruit on the trees. Many cultivars are
recommended for planting, such as: the Belle of Georgia, Elberta,
Hale Haven, Harvester, Indian Blood Cling, Red Haven, Reliance,
Gala, May Gold, Southern Pearl, Suwanee, Florida King, Florida
Dawn, and many other low chill Florida fruiting cultivars.
Peaches contain antioxidants that are important health
considerations in maintaining healthy bodies. Many websites that
recommend eating pits of peaches or apricots to prevent cancer
should be urged to research the fact that the seeds contain a
poison organic chemical, cyanogen, which produces fatal cyanide
poisoning that has caused sudden death for many people, including
Steve McQueen, a famous movie actor of the last century.
Peach fruit has been demonstrated to contain healthy portions of
Vitamin A, Vitamin B1, Vitamin B2, and Niacin. Peaches also
contain the minerals Calcium, Phosphorus, Iron, and Potassium.
Peach trees may be planted in various semi-dwarf sizes and ages
for backyard fruit gardens and occasionally larger trees will
grow fruit the first year of planting, but small trees usually
begin bearing in the third year.
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Written by: Patrick Malcolm. Learn more about various trees
by visiting the author's website: http://www.tytyga.com
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