The Peach - Prunus persica

The Peach - Prunus persica is most easily identified by its distinctive fruit and long narrow leaves.  It is a small deciduous tree that only reaches average heights of 10-30 feet tall.  The Peach is commercially cultivated and generally well managed in size and shape, however when found in the wild it often grows in a more shrubby habit.   The tree in generally grows in an erect form, with a single trunk and open crown.  Initially introduced from China, the Peach has been established in almost all of the Eastern United States.  Peaches were brought to the United States in the 16th century and to Europe during the 17th century.  Peach trees are often found growing wildly along fence lines, in old fields, on roadsides, and escaped from cultivation on the edges of farms.

Image Citation: Paul Bachi, University of Kentucky Research and Education Center, Bugwood.org

The bark of the Peach is reddish-brown in color with hairless twigs.  The leaves are alternate, simple in shape and elliptic or lanceolate, often folding upward from the mid rib area.  Leaves are a bright-deep green in color when mature, often slightly lighter when young.  The dark pink flowers of the Peach tree are 2-4 cm in diameter with 5 petals each, occuring in the early Spring.  The fruit is rounded, occasionally with a slight point at the base, yellowish to orange drupe with a red tinge in sections and a generally hairy surface.  The fruit has a 4-8 cm stone like pit in the center.  Commercially Peaches mature during the Summer season, with some heirloom varieties not maturing until late Summer or very early Fall.

Image Citation: Paul Bachi, University of Kentucky Research and Education Center, Bugwood.org

Peaches grown commercially are an important crop and a popular fruit.  China is currently the number one producer of Peaches worldwide.  A ripe Peach is best found by first smelling the fruit, there should be a sweet fragrance and then gently squeeze the Peach, when ripe they will never be hard.   It has been found that there are over 110 various chemical compounds within a Peach that create their unique aroma. Thought they are a fruit which many automatically assumes makes them "healthy" the average fruit has very little nutritional value.  There are currently over 2000 known varieties of peaches in the world today, many of which are suitable for growing within your own garden.

Image Citation: Peggy Greb, USDA Agricultural Research Service, Bugwood.org

In many cultures Peaches also have symbolic values.  In China Peach blossoms are considered to be a symbol of vitality as the blossoms appear prior to the leaves.  They are also often called Peaches of Immortality, local magistrates would cut peach wood branches and place them over their doors to protect against evils. One of Japan's most noble and semihistorical heroes, Momotaro was born from within an enormous peach floating down a stream.  

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The American Plum - Prunus americana

The American Plum - Prunus americana is best recognized by the combination of flaking scaly bark, sharply toothed leaf margins and red or yellow fruit.  It is a deciduous shrub or small tree that is capable of reaching heights of around 25 feet.  Generally it grows in an erect form with a single trunk, the young shoots are often thorn tipped.  

Image Citation: Vern Wilkins, Indiana University, Bugwood.org

The bark is smooth and reddish brown with horizontal lenticels that becomes tan, buff or grey with age.  The leaves are alternate, simple, elliptical, and oblong with a rounded base.  They are green in color with a hairless upper and lower surfaces, and blades that are 4-12 cm long.  The flower is generally 20-25 mm in diameter with 5 petals.  Generally the flowers are white in color and may become pink with age, they appear in Mid Spring to Early Summer.  The fruit is a rounded or ellipsoid, red, orange, or yellow drupe.  The fruit appears in late summer and is often glaucous with a white waxy blush on the surface.  

Image Citation: Paul Wray, Iowa State University, Bugwood.org

The American Plum is native throughout the Eastern United States and continuing West through the Rocky Mountain region.  It prefers rich, moist, loamy soils, open woods, woodland margins, fenceline and stream banks.  American Plum is sometimes considered to be thicket forming in woodland areas, though it is believed these thickets are formed by seedlings rather then root suckers.  American Plum can be found at most nurseries in the native region.  Currently there are over 260 varieties that have been developed from the American Plum which greatly improve the reach of it's growth range.  

Image Citation: T. Davis Sydnor, The Ohio State University, Bugwood.org

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The Pomegranate - Punica granatum

The Pomegranate - Punica granatum, is most often distinguished by the spiny branches, opposite clustered leaves, large showy flowers and very unique fruit.  It occurs in a deciduous shrub or small tree form, with a single short trunk and rounded crown that reaches an average height of only 8-25 feet tall.  The bark is brownish gray with thin smooth bark that becomes rougher with age.   The young twigs are angled at first but become rounded with maturity.  The leaves are simple, opposite, elliptic, oblong and clustered with a narrowly wedged shaped base and a blunt tipped point.  The upper surface of the leaves are a lustrous deep green with a pale underside.  The flowers are bisexual with fused sepals that form a tube, they are fleshy, reddish with 5-9 petals that are red, orange, yellow or white.  The flowers appear in late spring to summer.  

Image Citation: Karan A. Rawlins, University of Georgia, Bugwood.org

The fruit from the Pomegranate is rounded red, red-yellow, or red-brown with a white leathery berry that is 5-12 cm in diameter.  The fruit matures in the Fall.  Pomegranates are grown for both ornamental and food purposes and have been for centuries, the fruit is even mentioned in both the Bible and Quran.  It is said that the calyx on the fruit was even the inspiration for King Solomon's crown.

Image Citation: USDA ARS Photo Unit, USDA Agricultural Research Service, Bugwood.org

The Pomegranate originated in the region that is known today as Iran and cultivated since ancient times throughout the entire Mediterranean region.  It was introduced to first Spanish America in the late 16th century and later into California and Arizona.  Today it is cultivated and sparingly established in some of the Southern United States from North Carolina to California.  It is also widely cultivated throughout the Middle East, North Africa, tropical portions of Africa, Central Asia, the Mediterranean Basin, and India.  Recently it has begun to appear in European and and the Western Hemisphere.

Image Citation: Karan A. Rawlins, University of Georgia, Bugwood.org

The fruit has been used for centuries in many different cuisines.  It is used for juices, sauces, as a spice (flavoring), or a topping for desserts or soups.  The seeds of the Pomegranate provide 12% of your daily value of Vitamins C, 16% of your value vitamin K and 10% daily value of folate, they are also an excellent source of dietary fiber at 20% of the daily value (this is entirely contained in the edible seeds).

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Meet A Tree: The Pomegranate - Punica granatum

Meet A Tree: The Pomegranate - Punica granatum: The Pomegranate - Punica granatum , is most often distinguished by the spiny branches, opposite clustered leaves, large showy flowers and v...