Peach
Peach, common name for a deciduous orchard tree of the rose family, and for the fruit of this tree. The tree, which botanists believe is native to China, is cultivated throughout warm temperate and subtropical regions of the world. In the peach fruit, the stone is covered with a fleshy substance that is juicy, melting, and of fine flavor when matured and mellowed. The peach tree is of moderate height, more or less spreading according to variety, and, when left to itself, deep-rooted. The popular division of fruit varieties into clingstones and freestones—referring to the relative tendency of the flesh to cling to the stone—is by no means accurate. These two classes merge in different varieties, and even the same variety may be freestone and clingstone in different seasons. The nearly 300 varieties of peaches grown in America have been classified into five races, each with outstanding characteristics, ripening season, and uses. The nectarine is a variety of peach. The peach is not a ...