The Peach.—The peach (Prunus Persica[6]) is a native of Persia, as the botanical name indicates, and was brought from that country to Italy by the Romans. It is frequently mentioned by ancient writers, and was regarded with much veneration by the people of Asia. The peach reached the British Isles in the sixteenth century. There is no country where the peach is more successfully grown than in some portions of the United States. It can not be grown with profit north of 42° north latitude, but south of this line it flourishes as far as the Gulf of Mexico. There are some localities specially adapted for the peach, and here it is grown in its perfection. First among such sections is the Delaware peninsula, a territory of six thousand square miles, within which more peaches per acre are produced than anywhere else on the globe, and of the finest quality. A portion of Michigan, known as the “peach belt,” is likewise famous, and supplies the western markets with vast quantities of this luscious fruit.
The peach is a small tree, with long narrow leaves and beautiful pink blossoms. It grows rapidly to maturity, and after bearing a few crops is through with its best work, and should be replaced by another.
Mr. Fulton, in his small book on “Peach Culture,” writes: “The seed should be of natural fruit. It is more vigorous, more hardy, more certain to germinate, and the tree lives longer. This should never be overlooked by any planter who wishes the full reward of his labors.” This indicates that the seed in the budded fruit loses some of its vitality. It is doubtless a law that as we go farther from the native or wild state the less vigorous becomes the nurtured plant. The artificial life that many plants lead leaves them no time to store up strength for the continuation of the race, and in many cases they have lost all power of producing offspring. The young peach trees are provided by sowing the seeds in beds, carefully kept free from weeds. After the proper size is reached, buds are inserted, as above mentioned under the apple, and in a year or two the budded trees are ready for the orchard.
This process of budding is similar to that of making cuttings or slips, only, a single bud is set in the cleft bark of a living stem, instead of a piece of branch, with two or more buds, set in moist sand. Grafting differs from budding in that the cion is a stem with two or more buds, usually set in a cleft of a living branch; it is budding on a larger scale, and is suited to large trees.
The varieties of peaches are very numerous, more than one hundred and fifty sorts being set down in some lists. It is not an easy task to select the best. There are many things to consider in deciding upon the merit of a peach. It may have the best flavor, but be subject to rot, a poor bearer, or be so small that it will not sell well. The tree should be vigorous and productive, with fruit large, rich flavored, and fine colored. Such fruit is fit food for the gods. From the recent Pomological Society catalogue we find that the following varieties are the most in favor, take the whole country through. Among those known as very early are: Alexander, early York, large early York, Hales and truth; medium, early Crawford, Chinese cling, Columbia, oldmixon free and oldmixon cling; late, smock, stump-the-world, late Crawford, Heath cling, and Ward’s late. By a careful selection of varieties with regard to their time of ripening, a small orchard would furnish fruit from midsummer until the frosts come. In setting out an orchard there is a tendency to purchase new sorts, and for this the nurserymen are largely to blame. A man’s interest in the sale of so simple a thing as a tree may cause it to be overestimated. A half dozen time-tested standard sorts are worth more than a score of new seedlings without any record.
Peaches are classified by their fruit into those with white flesh and yellow flesh, and these are divided again into free-stones and clings. In some of the clings the flesh is very superior, but owing to its close union with the stone it is difficult to eat, and therefore is far less popular than free-stones of an inferior quality.
The leading enemies to the peach are the borer, curculio,[7] the leaf-curl and the “yellows.” The “curl” is caused by a fungus, and the remedy is picking and burning the leaves. The “yellows” is the most fatal of all the enemies, having ruined hundreds of the finest orchards. The cause is not fully understood, but the indications are that it may be a low form of microscopic life known as bacteria. No cure has been found, and when a tree turns the characteristic yellow it should be torn out and burned, root and branch.
We can not close this brief sketch without thinking of that happy boy reclining upon the shady sod, who
—lifted his head to where hung in his reach
All laden with honey, the ruddy-cheeked peach.