Chinese Peaches: Past And Present

摘要

DID you know that "Tao zi" is Pinyin for the Chinese characters meaning "peach fruit"? Peaches originate in China, where they are one of the most ancient domesticated fruits, with nearly 4000 years of cultivation. Vast genetic diversity exists in China where peach and its related species grow in provinces ranging from the warm subtropical south to the cold and dry north. In the 1980s, a Chinese fruit survey team found a peach tree in Tibet that had a 30 foot circumference, was 65 feet tall, and was estimated to be 1000 years old!