Chapter I: History of the Peach (1)

The history of the peach follows step by step the history of agriculture. The beginning of agriculture, as depicted in the traditions and embellished in the poetry of ancient peoples, was the creation of useful plants by some Divinity. But, counting unwritten history and poetic fancy as naught and coming to recorded facts--those of history as we now have it--the beginning of agriculture is marked by two recorded events. The first occurred 2700 years B. C. when Emperor Chenming, Ruler of China, instituted ceremonies for the sowing of various vegetables and grains. The second event was the building of the Great Pyramid of Gizeh by some ruler who lorded it over Egypt between 2500 to 2000 years B. C. and who ornamented his handiwork with drawings of figs.

Yet these early records in China and Egypt were not made at the beginnings of agriculture in those countries. Plants were undoubtedly cultivated centuries before it occurred to Emperor Chenming that rice, wheat and other crops deserved ceremonial sowings. The pyramids of Gizeh could only have been built by an organized, civilized people with cultivated fields on which to levy toll for the dormant season and lean years--pyramids could hardly be raised by a people forced to skim a day-to-day existence from wild plants. "Art is long and time is fleeting" in agriculture, and between the obscure beginnings of this ancient art, when naked men following the chase began to vary a meat diet with fruits, grains and roots plucked from the wild, and the regular cultivation of useful plants, as implied by these old records from China and Egypt, there are many steps and thousands and thousands of years.

If, then, the history of the peach begins with the history of agriculture, and the beginnings of agriculture are lost in the obscurity of antiquity, it is useless to speculate as to how long the peach has been cultivated. The statements of the early historians as to the age of the domesticated peach are so at variance that they serve only to confuse. Indeed, were we to attempt to bring into agreement the diverse assertions of historians we should never know even the place of origin of the peach; for it is upon data from botany that we must depend most in determining the habitat of our fruit. This subject we now come to discuss in detail.

THE ORIGIN OF THE PEACH

Names frequently breed misunderstandings and in the case of the peach a fine brood of mistakes as to the origin of the fruit has come from the name. As all know, "peach" and most of its equivalents in the countries of Europe are derived from "Persia" and this has given rise to the supposition that the original habitat of the fruit is Persia. The ancient authors who mention the peach, as Theophrastus, Columella and Pliny, agree that the home of the peach was Persia and, even until our own time, to be written in any of these worthies is proof conclusive. While negative evidence counts for but little, the notion is so firmly fixed that some, at least, of the races of peaches are Persian products that it seems best to clear the way for positive evidence by first proving that the first home of the peach was not Persia.

Persia is pictured as a land of fruits before agriculture had begun in Greece and Rome. The quince and the pomegranate probably originated here and, with the olive, grape, almond, and, to the north at least, the cherry and plum, have been cultivated from three to four thousand years.

At very early times the quince, pomegranate, olive and grape were introduced from Persia, according to De Candolle, still our best authority, into Greece and Rome and even the cherry and plum, from countries to the north if not from Persia, reached southern Europe long before the peach. It seems certain, as De Candolle suggests,[1] that if the peach had been a native of Persia, had it existed there during all time, so beautiful and so delectable a fruit would have been taken earlier into Asia Minor and Greece. As gratifying to all the senses by which we judge fruits as any other product of the orchard, as easily transported and propagated as any--more so than most--it cannot be believed that the other fruits named would have been given preference over the peach by conquerors or travelers carrying Persian luxuries to westward countries.

Moreover, as De Candolle further points out, the several Hebrew and Sanskrit peoples did not speak in sacred or vulgar writings of the peach as they did many times of the olive, quince, grape and pomegranate. Yet these peoples radiated from the valleys of the Euphrates and were at all times in close communication with Persia. Since, according to the authoritative De Candolle, Xenophon, who retreated with the ten thousand 401 B. C., does not mention the peach, this fruit probably did not reach Greece until Alexander's expedition and was first mentioned by Theophrastus 332 B. C. (if the fruit mentioned by Theophrastus is the peach) and did not reach Rome until after the beginning of the Christian era.

The more one examines historical records the more evident it becomes that Greek and Roman writers assumed that the habitat of the peach, which they called the Persian apple, was Persia because it came thence to their countries. Ancient historians very commonly and very confusingly made the assumption that the region from which a plant product came to their country was its first habitat.

The best means of establishing the origin of a plant is to discover in what country it grows spontaneously. This would be a simple matter, indeed, if one could be sure that a given plant found growing wild is not an escape from cultivation. Here is the trouble in the case of the peach. According to the botanists the tree is now growing wild in Persia, as it is in nearby countries, and for that matter in other parts of the Old World and in many places in the New World. The painstaking De Candolle, who has carefully sifted the evidence of the leading botanists until his time of writing, 1882, concludes that the peach has never been truly wild in Persia. An examination of the works of botanists writing since De Candolle's study of the subject does not show that any offers proof that the peach was originally wild in Persia.

Without going into the matter further it seems safe to say that the Greek and Roman writers were at fault in naming Persia as the home of the peach. To summarize: its late distribution, as compared with that of other Persian fruits argues against such an origin; philology, which usually affords indications touching the habitat of a species, is against the Persian theory of origin since neither Hebrew nor Sanskrit names the peach; lastly, botany, the most direct means of discovering the geographic origin of a plant, offers no positive evidence that Persia is the home of the peach. The fallacy that the peach comes from Persia, written in nearly all horticultural and botanical works for 2000 years, now being disposed of, we may take up the claim of China that the peach is another of its great gifts to the world.

A survey of the subject is convincing that the peach comes from China. Necessarily, such a survey must be brief, yet it is important that no doubt be left as to the origin of the peach, thus freeing pomological literature from the train of misunderstandings following the current opinion that part of our peaches, at least, come from Persia. The terms "Persian peaches" and the "Persian race of peaches" are misleading and should be discarded. Data from botany and history furnish the chief proofs that the fruit of this discussion is of Chinese origin.

Botany and history are a hard team to drive but when the two do travel together in determining the origin of a plant the matter, as a rule, is settled. Does botany accord with history in placing the original peach in China? Botanists and explorers from first to last agree that the peach is, and long has been, wild in China but there is no agreement as to the nature of its wildness. Some say it is indigenous and others that it may be an escape from cultivation. The peach runs wild so quickly in countries to which it is adapted that it is almost impossible to say, from the evidence to be found, whether it is an original or only a naturalized inhabitant of China. But it seems more nearly to approach a truly feral condition in China than in any other country unless it be America and all know that in the New World it is an introduced plant.

Of the botanists and explorers who report finding the peach wild in China, Frank N. Meyer[2] of the United States Department of Agriculture is most explicit. Meyer, in sending seeds of wild peaches from China, accompanies them with the following remarks:

"40001. Wild peaches having larger fruits than the ordinary wild ones, said to come from near Tze Wu, to the south of Sianfu, but some also probably collected from trees in gardens which were raised from wild seeds. When seen wild this peach generally assumes a low bush form of spreading habit; when planted in gardens and attended to, it grows up into a small tree, reaching a height of 12 to 20 feet, with a smooth trunk of dark mahogany-brown color. The leaves are always much smaller and more slender than in cultivated varieties, while their color is much darker green. They seem to be somewhat less subject to various diseases than the cultivated sorts and they are most prolific bearers, although the fruit is of very little value on account of its smallness and lack of flavor. In gardens around Sianfu this wild peach is utilized as a stock for improved varieties. It is also grown as an ornamental; said to be literally covered in spring with multitudes of shell-pink flowers."

"40002. Wild peaches, occurring in the foothills of the higher mountains at Tsing Ling Kang, Shensi, at altitudes from 2000 to 5000 feet, generally found at the edges of loess cliffs and on rocky slopes. There is a great deal of variation to be observed as regards size and shape of leaves, density of foliage and general habits."

"40003. Wild peaches found on a mountain side, near Pai dja dien, Shensi, at an elevation of 4000 feet; these small trees and bushes had borne such a heavy crop that the ground beneath them was covered with a layer, a few inches thick, of the small, yellowish, hairy fruits. The local inhabitants didn't consider them worth collecting even, and they were rotting and drying up."

"40004. Wild peaches occurring as tall shrubs in loess cliffs, at the Tibetan frontier, Kagoba, Kansu, at elevations of 6000-8000 feet. Save for some children who eat these wild peaches, they are otherwise considered worthless wild fruit. Local name _Yeh t'ao_, meaning 'wild peach,' and _Mao t'ao_, meaning 'hairy peach.'"

"40005. Wild peaches found on stony mountain slopes in a wild, very sparsely populated country, near Kwa tsa, on Siku River, Kansu. No fruit trees whatsoever are cultivated by the local settlers in the mountains, and the way some of these peach bushes grow excludes them from ever having been brought there by any man or even any quadruped; only birds might have transported them."

In a letter to the author,[3] Mr. Meyer says further:

"Where did I find the peach wild? Well, I first came across it in loess cliffs in southern Shensi at an elevation of about 4000 feet above sea. Later on I found plenty of them in central Shensi, in southern Kansu and in the Tibetan borderland, up to 7000 feet elevation above sea. All the plants I found were freestone types, and according to the natives they all have shell-pink flowers. In the mountains of the Chekiang Province, however, I found a type which seems to be clingstone."

In still another letter sent me from the United States Department of Agriculture, Mr. Meyer says:

"It is about one month ago since I wrote you last, and so far as real distance is concerned, I have not advanced much, but we went over some very interesting territory and I was lucky enough to discover the _real wild peach_, growing in loess ravines some 2-3 days to the East from here, near a village called _Tchao yu_. The plants are of smaller dimensions than our cultivated strains, and the stones are somewhat different as regards shape and grooves, but still on the whole there is little difference between a very poor seedling-peach and this wild one.

These wild peaches are locally cut for firewood, for the fruits are pretty near inedible, being small and having hard, sourish flesh. They grow at the edges of deep loess ravines and on the steep, sloping bottom of such ravines. The Chinese locally do not call this peach '_yeh tao_' or '_shan tao_' but '_Mao t'ao_,' meaning 'hairy peach.' In the vicinity where they grow, no peaches are cultivated although half a day's journey lower down, one meets with some poor looking trees in gardens.

The elevation I found them was almost exactly 4000 feet above sea. I gathered some fruits, but they are not quite ripe; I am trying to ripen them off, however, so that we may obtain at least a few ripe seeds. As a stock, however, it has not the value the _Davidiana_ peach has, not being as vigorous and apparently being attacked by the same pests that infest cultivated peaches. This 'find' is of great interest, however, showing that wild peaches exist much nearer the coast than we suspected, and that the peach naturally is a native of semi-arid regions."

The explorations made by Mr. Meyer cover, of course, but a small part of the vast empire of China. Further search will, no doubt, show many other localities in Central and Eastern Asia where the peach grows naturally and has probably done so from time immemorial.

As all who consult them know, ancient authors are often at fault in matters of history in determining the origin of cultivated plants but they are usually fairly accurate in stating the date of culture of a plant in a country. In the case of the peach the date of culture can be established as so much earlier in China than elsewhere that history alone all but proves its previous existence there in the wild state. In short, the peach was a cultivated fruit in China before there were other agricultural communities from which it could come; for, be it remembered, in China, according to De Candolle, our best authority, agricultural and horticultural arts flourished long before they had even begun elsewhere, unless, possibly, Egypt be excepted, and here the peach, where it may be grown at all, is surely an introduced plant.

A statement of the first known dates of peach-culture in various countries is strong proof that its cultivation began in China. According to De Candolle[4] the culture of the peach was "spoken of 2000 years before its introduction into the Greco-Roman world, a thousand years before its introduction into the lands of the Sanskrit-speaking race." As we have said, the Bible and other Hebrew books do not mention the peach and there is no Sanskrit name for it. Of the Greeks, Xenophon, 401 B. C., makes no mention of the peach but Theophrastus, a little later, 322 B. C., speaks of it as a fruit of Persia. Coming to the Romans, no mention is made of the peach by Cato, 201 B. C., nor by Varro, 117-27 B. C., but Pliny, A. D. 79, expressly states that the peach was imported by the Romans from Persia not long before.

De Candolle gives no authority for his statement that the peach was spoken of 2000 years before its introduction into Europe and I cannot verify it; but a search through even such Chinese literature as is accessible to one who does not read the Chinese language shows that the peach was commonly spoken of in the literature of China several hundred years before the Christian era. Two examples must suffice, taking those that seem most authentic as to the identity of the peach. In the Shi-King, or book of poetry, a collection of ancient Chinese poems made by Confucius (551-478 B. C.) the peach, in common with the plum, pear, jujube and other fruits, is several times mentioned. According to the translator all of these poems were written before the Sixth Century B. C., the oldest dating back eighteen centuries. Thus in Book I,[5] Odes of Chow in the South, is the following bit of verse:

In Praise of a Bride

"Graceful and young the peach-tree stands;
How rich its flowers, all gleaming bright!
This bride to her new home repairs;
Chamber and house she'll order right.

Graceful and young the peach-tree stands;
Large crops of fruit it soon will show.
This bride to her new home repairs;
Chamber and house her sway shall know.

Graceful and young the peach-tree stands;
Its foliage clustering green and full.
This bride to her new home repairs;
Her household will attest her rule."

Other references to the peach may be found in Book IX,[6] The Odes of Wei, and Book XIII,[7] The Odes of Kwei.

Superstitions and legends throw light on the antiquity of the objects with which they are connected. It is significant that the Chinese alone ascribe miraculous powers to the peach, their traditions of the properties of different forms of this fruit being both numerous and very ancient. M. Cibot, a French missionary among the Chinese, in a series of cyclopedic volumes on China, devotes a chapter to the peach in which, after describing the peaches of the country and giving a full discussion of methods of culture, he mentions numerous Chinese superstitions concerning this fruit. He writes:[8]

"The Chinese have for a long time preserved the history of the first ages either in their books or in their traditions. The oldest of their books have perished. They have saved only a part of their ancient national works on the great wars and general uprisings, and the original traditions, changed in a thousand ways, made into fables, finally corrupted by idolatry, are today only chaos; but this chaos is not without any ray of light. Many of these traditions, although disfigured, bear back too exactly to the marvelous tales of the lost books to be able to mistake the beliefs of the early ages. Thus, there are many traditions referring to the peach. Some call it the tree of life, others the tree of death. Peaches lengthened to a point, of large size, and colored red on one side, are regarded by the Chinese as the symbol of a long life. In consequence of these ancient national superstitions, peaches enter into all the ornaments of painting and sculpture. They are saved for the salute to the new year. Here are several ancient texts on the peach and its fruits:

From Chin-non-King: 'The peach 'Yu' signifies death and eternal life. If one has been able to eat it enough times, it saves the body from corruption till the end of the world.' From Chin-y-King: 'There is in the Orient a peach whose almond, eaten, makes eternal life.' From Chou-y-Ki: 'Whoever eats this fruit (the peach 'Yu' from the Koue-liou Mountain) obtains immortal life.'

Still other texts could be cited but I will merely remark that in all the peach is connected with immortality. Again we find that certain peaches can not be offered by the ancients in sacrifice, and that the premature blossoming of another peach signifies great calamities. To quote again: From Sin-lin: 'In the garden of Yang was the peach of death; whoever approached it must die.' From Fong-fou-teng: 'It is said in the book of Hoang-ti that two brothers found on a mountain a peach tree under which were a hundred demons to cause death to men.' From Lietchouen, on the subject of the evils which afflict the earth: 'the tree of Knowledge is the peach.'"

Very interesting and illuminating as to the age of the peach in China, is an account given by Dr. Yamei Kin[9] who was asked by a member of the staff of the Office of Foreign Seed and Plant Introduction, United States Department of Agriculture, for information concerning the peach-blossoms. After describing the several kinds of blossoms borne by Chinese peaches, the writer gives some of the superstitions and legends which the Chinese connect with the peach.

"The ordinary name for pink is peach flower color, and notwithstanding the love of Chinese for color, it is used sparingly, in fact, owing to its being associated with the peach blossom, seems to have an unsavory significance, as I found when I came home one day with a pink satin brocade gown that I had just purchased. My people held up their hands in horror, and exclaimed it was a mercy that I did not intend to wear that here, it would only do for outside countries that did not know about peach flowers, which remarks led me to leave it in America when I came back, though it was a very lovely delicate color and one of my prettiest gowns.

The reason for this prejudice is owing to its symbolism. Just as the violet is considered in western lands to be the symbol of modest worth, so the plum is that of feminine virtue in China and the peach flower the opposite. Not even the beauty of its color, whether delicate pink or deep cerise, redeems it from this fatal significance. In order that there may be no possible opportunity for a 'peach flower heart' to spring up unawares in some girl of respectable family, it is not considered wise to plant a peach of any kind near the bed room windows of the court yards inhabited by the women, yet peach wands are supposed to be especially useful to beat off all evil spirits, only they must be plucked during a solar eclipse and a hole bored through one end for hanging up by, during a lunar eclipse, which perhaps accounts for their fewness, as during those times in the old days the people were generally busily occupied in beating gongs and firing off crackers to drive away the heavenly dogs which were supposed to be devouring those luminaries, and no one had time to think of making peach wands. The lucky possessor of an efficacious peach wand is supposed to be able to sleep at night with it under his pillow in full confidence that no evil spirits can harm him.

Taoism from early days has taken the peach as its particular fruit, signifying longevity, much as the apples of Hesperides were symbolic in the Grecian mythology.

Furthermore peach stones are often made into rosaries which are considered specially fine. There is a collection of tales by one Cornaby to be found in almost every library called 'A String of Peach Stones.' And a host of legends cluster around the tale of Sun, the stone monkey, eating the peaches of immortality stolen from the gardens of the genii, whereby he attains immortality. This theme is seen elaborated in many scenes, that decorate pottery, textiles, and congratulatory scrolls.

I wish that I were not tied down so much by tedious detail in the medical work, as there is a most interesting book that needs to be translated telling much of the folk lore of the peach interwoven with the plot, which is supposed to be the journey of Hsien tsang to bring back the sacred sutras of Buddha from India. It is said that this is an actual historic occurrence, but this tale is evidently semi-religious and allegorical, as well, combining in itself the characteristics of Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress, Hans Christian Andersen, and the Arabian Nights, if you can imagine such a mixture, yet giving graphic pictures of Chinese life in various phases that are as true as when the book was written.

One of the most charming legends of peach flower lore is that of the 'Peach Blossom Fountain,' an allegory written by T'ao Yuan Ming between A. D. 365-427, describing how a fisherman got lost one day and penetrating up a river finds himself in a creek bordered with many peach trees full of bloom, at the end of which he comes upon a small mountain in which is a cave which he traverses and enters on a new country where there is every sign of prosperity, every one is courteous to each other, kindliness and contentment prevail, but they wear the garb of the times of the First Emperor some five centuries previous and have been lost to the rest of the country ever since. The fisherman returns after a sojourn with them, and tells his fellow villagers of this wonderful country and stirs up so much interest that finally the governor of the province joins in the search for this wonderful country, but it is all of no avail and at last the fisherman realizes that he will never more see the peach blossom days of his youth with its rosy dreams and ideals that come but once in a lifetime."

Lastly, a significant fact suggesting the Chinese origin of the peach is found in the behavior of this fruit in America. The peach is more at home in North America than in any other part of the world unless it be China. Now, that there is a pomological alliance between eastern Asia and eastern America is well known. The remarkable relationship between the plants of the two regions was first set forth by Asa Gray and subsequent writers have added much to what he told us. The explanation lies, as all agree, in similarities in climate. Now, with this relationship of the wild and cultivated floras of eastern America and China in mind, the rapid acclimation and acclimatization of the peach in the United States are readily understood if we accept China as the habitat of this fruit. On the other hand, the natural plant-products of Persia find life anything but easy in eastern America.

There is but one further consideration before beginning the history of the peach as a cultivated fruit. Thomas Andrew Knight and Charles Darwin contended that the peach is a modified almond. This hypothesis would scarcely deserve consideration were it not for the high authority of the men who espoused it--the judgments of a Knight and a Darwin cannot be overlooked.

HAS THE PEACH COME FROM THE ALMOND?

In the light of evolution every plant has been preceded by another and since the peach and almond have many characters in common, one may have descended from the other. But as to which, if either, is the parent species it would seem idle to speculate with the shreddy and patchy knowledge we now possess of the descent of plants. Yet Thomas Andrew Knight, the greatest horticultural authority of his time and one of the leading experimenters of all time in this field of agriculture, maintained that the peach is a modified almond. His theory received the support of several of the leading English horticulturists of the last century and Darwin gave it credence to the extent of collecting data for its substantiation.

Knight believed that the almond and the peach constituted a single species and that by selection under cultivation an almond could ultimately be turned into a peach.[10] He sought proof for his theory in hybridization and on a tree raised from the seed of an almond fertilized by peach-pollen produced a fruit with soft and melting flesh and in all characteristics more like the peach than the almond. This experiment, which in the light of our present knowledge of the laws of inheritance does not in the least illuminate the hypothesis with which Knight started, carried on in the medieval days of plant-breeding, convinced not only Knight in his belief that the peach may be bred from the almond but led others, even down to our own time, to accept the theory.

Thus, a writer, presumably Lindley, in _The Gardener's Chronicle_[11] in 1856 says "we are justified in the conclusion that the Almond bears about the same relation to the Peach that the Crab bears to the Cultivated Apple." Later, in the same article, the descent is pictured as follows:

"1. Almond became more fleshy--Bad clingstone.

2. Bad clingstone became more fleshy--Good clingstone.

3. Good clingstone became more fleshy--Our soft peaches.

4. Soft peach sported, receding toward the original fleshy type
and lost its wool--Nectarine."

Another high authority in his time, Thomas Rivers,[12] in 1863, held that peaches, if left to a state of nature would degenerate into thick-fleshed almonds and makes the positive statement that he has "one or two seedling peaches approaching very nearly to that state."

Darwin,[13] in 1868, considers Knight's supposition at length and while he does not positively accept it, yet lends it his support by quoting several authors who put forth proofs in favor of it. His most positive statement in discussing the theory referring to facts regarding the origin of the peach is: "The supposition, however, that the peach is a modified almond which acquired its present character at a comparatively late period, would, I presume, account for these facts."

Carrière,[14] one of the most eminent French pomologists of the last century, is the chief French champion of the theory that the peach came from the almond and devotes several pages in his estimable work, _Variétés De Pêchers_, in demonstrating that the one is a form of the other. His arguments, however, are but amplifications of those of Knight and Lindley though he cites more intermediate forms than either of the English writers--so many that they go far toward convincing one of the correctness of his views. There is the feeling, however, in the case of Carrière, in the light of present knowledge, that his botanical evidence is pushed a little too far for full credulity.

Knight, Lindley, Rivers, Darwin and Carrière, the men holding the theory whose opinions are most worthy consideration, fell into error, as we think, through attaching too much importance to likenesses in the fruits of the peach and almond and because they became confused in following the behavior of the two fruits under hybridization. As we shall show later in discussing the characters of the peach, this fruit differs from the almond in other characters than those of the fruit--characters not at all likely to be changed by cultivation and selection as would all those of the fruits. Knight's proof from hybridization was purely speculative. The fact that the peach and almond may be crossed, giving intermediate forms, nowadays would not be looked upon as proof that the two necessarily belong to one species. However, in the light of the knowledge in existence at the beginning of the last century regarding the crossing of plants, we need not apologize for the inference that Knight drew from his simple experiment.

Students of heredity would find almost conclusive proof that the peach is not a modified almond--a descendant, say, in this geologic period at least--in the fact that there is no recorded case of a peach fertilized by a peach producing an almond, or _vice versa_. If the relationship were at all close, if the two species had had a common origin even though in rather remote times, if they were nearly enough related readily to hybridize or be hybridized, it would be expected that now and then, as in the case of a nectarine, the peach would produce an almond or the almond a peach.

Geographical botany also opposes Knight's hypothesis, as De Candolle[15] points out, for, as he plainly shows, the almond had its origin in western Asia, it being found truly wild in many parts of south-western Asia and having been cultivated many centuries before the peach was known in these regions. On the other hand, the almond was not known in China before the Christian era whereas the peach had been cultivated there at least 2000 years anterior to the introduction of the almond. With such widely separated habitats, the two fruits can hardly be considered as parent and offspring.

We cannot close our eyes to the patent relationships of the peach and the almond. That the two constitute but one species, as we now consider species, or that they bear the close relationship of the peach and the nectarine, probably no one now in high authority will concede. But for the weight of the names we have used, and the fact that the theory still finds supporters, Knight's hypothesis, the outcropping of a speculative mind in a speculative age, might have been overlooked or dismissed with a word.

THE PEACH IN ASIA

We must have more knowledge of the peach in Asia than the bare fact that it originated somewhere in the vast empire of China. We want, first, to know what the characters of the prototypal peach were. If we can get some idea of the original wild peach of China we shall know something of how this fruit has been improved by man and, perhaps, something of its future potentialities. Second, though not essential to this study, it will be profitable to peach-growers to inquire whether there are types of peaches still remaining in China that might be improved under western cultivation. If so, we want them, since our cultivated peaches are not free from faults, some of which we might get rid of by the interjection of new blood. It is now about seventy years since Robert Fortune, the adventurous English plant-collector, began dipping into the horticultural treasures of China; and recent explorations make plain that there are still riches in plants in that country--the fact that they can now be brought through the "open door," instead of as spoils to be smuggled out, makes it easier to obtain any new types of peaches that may now be found.

What were the characters of the prototypal peach in China? The few records that have come down through the ages do not enable us to form much of a picture of the primitive peach. But plants do not change quickly in China, for their orchard-cultivation is not as intensive nor selection as assiduously practiced as in western countries, so that we are warranted in assuming that cultivation for forty centuries has not greatly changed this fruit. Besides, it is probable that the wild forms, whether truly wild or reverted escapes from cultivation, now represent closely the original indigenous stocks of the peach. Luckily, we have trustworthy sources of information in regard to both the wild and the cultivated peaches as they now grow in China. We are at this time concerned, it should be said, only with the common peach, _Prunus persica_.

Fortune began botanical explorations in China in 1844, since which time one enthusiast after another, thirsting for botanical spoils and honors, has brought from eastern Asia and Europe to America, varieties and species of ornamental and agricultural plants. In the accounts of these exploring and collecting expeditions, there are many records of peaches, wild and cultivated, that are now growing in China and from these we may piece out a fair description of the original races of this fruit. The United States Department of Agriculture, through its agricultural explorers, collaborators and correspondents in the Office of Foreign Seed and Plant Introduction, has given special attention to agricultural plants and from the accounts of the workers in this department alone, we can get a good picture of the peach of the Twentieth Century in China which, as we think, will represent very well the original stock from which all peaches have come.

It is now almost the unanimous judgment of scientists that the characters of plants are independent entities which are thrown into various relationships with each other in individuals and groups of individuals as varieties and species. This conception of unit-characters lies at the foundation of botanical and horticultural descriptions and of plant-breeding. It is more important, then, to know what the characters of Chinese peaches were and are than to attempt to describe in full the wild and cultivated peaches of China. In this, a horticultural study, it answers our purpose to consider chiefly the characters of the fruits.

The fruit-characters that differentiate races and varieties of cultivated peaches in America are ten, as follows: Downy skin; smooth skin; white flesh; yellow flesh; red flesh; flesh clinging to the stone; flesh free from the stone; shape more or less round; shape roundish but decidedly beaked; shape distinctly flat. Let us see by direct quotations from the workers in the United States Department of Agriculture how many of these ten fruit-characters are named in the wild and cultivated Chinese peaches of today.

_Downy skin._--A downy skin is the normal condition of the peach. This character is found in all of the peaches to be mentioned in this discussion except those under the next heading.

_Smooth skin._--"28963--From Samarkand, Turkestan."[16]

"A small nectarine of very firm flesh and of subacid flavor; red throughout; from a distance resembles a crab apple more than anything else. Said to come from Chartchui."

"29227[17]--From Samarkand, Russian Turkestan. A yellow clingstone nectarine of medium size; meat very firm and of medium sweet taste, not melting."

"30325[18]--From Khotan, Chinese Turkestan. A nectarine called _Dagatch_. Fruits red, of medium size, clingstone."

"30332[19]--From Karghalik, Chinese Turkestan. A nectarine called _Anar-shabdalah_. Fruits rather small, whitish pink in color, and of sweet, aromatic flavor. This is a medium-late ripen er and a rare local variety."

"30334[20]--From Shagra-bazar, Chinese Turkestan. A nectarine called _Kizil-dagatch_. Fruits small, red; medium early."

"30335[21]--From Upal, Chinese Turkestan. A nectarine called _Ak-tagatch_. Fruits large, white; a late ripener; of good keeping and shipping qualities."

"30336[22]--From Yarkand, Chinese Turkestan. A nectarine called _Ak-dagatch_. Fruits medium-sized, of white color; clingstone; late in ripening; of good keeping and shipping qualities."

"30341[23]--From Upal, Chinese Turkestan. A nectarine called _Kizil tagatch_. Fruits large, red throughout; meat firm; of good keeping and shipping qualities."

"30359[24]--From Kashgar, Chinese Turkestan. A very large, red, clingstone nectarine; late ripener; can be kept for several weeks after being fully ripe."

"30647[25]--From Khotan, Chinese Turkestan. A nectarine called _Togatch Moneck_."

"30648[26]--From Guma, Chinese Turkestan. A small late variety of nectarine, white in color, of fresh, sweet taste and good keeping qualities."

_White flesh._--"27111[27]--Chinese name _Ta po tao_. A large white peach, native in Shantung Province, China (Chefoo district)."

"30324[28]--From Khotan, Chinese Turkestan. A peach called _Ak-shabdalah_. Fruits large, white, juicy, and aromatic; an early ripener."

"30337[29]--From Shagra-bazar, Chinese Turkestan. A peach called _Kok-shabdalah_. Fruits medium large, of greenish-white color; taste sweet; medium late; not a keeper."

"30338[30]--From Yarkand, Chinese Turkestan. A peach called _Taka-shabdalah_. Fruits very large, of whitish color with a slight blush; late in ripening; can be kept for several weeks."

"30339[31]--From Karawag, Chinese Turkestan. A peach called _Ak-shabdalah_. Fruits large, white in color; flavor very sweet and pleasing; early in ripening."

"17167[32]--From Tung-chow. A large, white peach, considered a fine fruit by the Chinese. Non-melting flesh."

"20239[33]--From Kirin. A pale colored, medium-sized peach. Kirin is the most northern locality where I have as yet found peaches."

"27111[34]--Chinese name _Tah-buy-tower_. A large white peach native in Shantung Province, China."

_Yellow flesh._--"30333[35]--From Shagra-bazar, Chinese Turkestan. A peach called _Serech-shabdalah_. Fruits very large, of yellow color throughout; meat very firm; clingstone. Stands shipping well, but does not keep long; late in ripening (October)."

"35201[36]--From Mengtsz, Yunnan, China. Seeds of Mengtsz white peach and yellow free peach. This fruit is grown all over this province and occasionally attains an enormous size, and in that respect could easily compete with the best French peaches.'"

_Red flesh._--"6543[37]--From Sai Tseo. Long, rather pointed, red-fleshed, freestone."

"34275[38]--From Soochow, China. This is a mixed lot of peach seeds containing some from red clingstones and some from white freestones."

"17728[39]--From Matou. A peach described to me by the natives as very large, red meated, and juicy."

"21991[40]--From Hangchow, Chehkiang, China. A flat, red-meated peach, not very sweet in taste. Chinese name _Hung pien tao_."

_Clingstone._--"30340[41]--From Karawag, Chinese Turkestan. A peach called _Ais-shabdalah_. Fruits large, pinkish-white; meat firm, sweet; clingstone. It is said here that it can be kept for several months."

"21989[42]--From Feitcheng, Shantung, China. The most famous peach of northern China, called the _Fei tao_. The fruits grow as heavy as one pound apiece and are pale yellowish colored, with a slight blush; meat white, except near the stone, where it is slightly red; taste excellent, sweet, aromatic, and juicy. Is a clingstone. Has extraordinary keeping and shipping qualities. The branches need propping up on account of the weight of the fruits."

"29991[43]--Seeds of a peach from Tsinanfu, Shantung, China. It is a cling and though rather inconvenient for eating, is very large and luscious, coming into market about the middle of September and lasting for a month or more."

_Freestone._--"6635[44]--From mountains near Ichang. Flowers late, fruit ripens in September. Freestone. Fruit small and quite hairy."

"30357[45]--From Kashgar, Chinese Turkestan. A large, red, freestone peach, fine flavored; a medium-late ripener, and a most prolific bearer."

"30358[46]--From Kashgar, Chinese Turkestan. A large, pale reddish, freestone peach of very fine flavor; medium-late ripener; not a keeper."

"39428[47]--Amygdalus sp.--Seeds of a wild peach from Sianfu, Shensi, China. Stones of the real wild peach, growing in the mountains, one day's journey south of Sianfu. The fruits are small, hard and sourish, but there is considerable variation in them as regards size and taste. They are apparently all freestones and while some have red flesh near the stone, others are white throughout."

_Round peaches._--Roundness is one of the characteristics of the peach and it but labors the argument to give space to show that this character is found in Chinese varieties. All peaches mentioned in this discussion are round or roundish except those coming under the heading "flat."

_Round and beaked._--"8331 to 8334[48]--Eagle Beak peach from Canton, China. From orchard trees growing near the Great North Gate of Canton, at Ngau lan Kong, of the _Ying tsui t'o_ or Eagle Beak peach. This variety resembles the Honey closely, except that the pointed tip of the fruit is more curved, according to Dr. J. M. Swan, of the Canton Hospital."

"9805[49]--From Canton, China. _Hung Wat tim._ A variety of the 'Honey' type, reported to be good for preserves and not so sweet as the _Ying tsui_ or Eagle Beak variety. It is medium early."

"22650[50]--Shanghai. These peaches are called the _Honey_ peach, and I think are very fine."

_Flat._--"6541[51]--From Sai Tseo, above Hankow. Flat, freestone, ripens in May."

"6542[52]--From near Sai Tseo, above Hankow. White, fine fleshed, flat, freestone, ripening the middle of May."

"6544[53]--From Sai Tseo. Medium size, flat, freestone, ripening in May."

"6545[54]--From Sai Tseo. Flat, freestone, quality very good. Ripens in June."

"29991[55]--Chinese Flat Peach. From Tsinan, Shantung, China. Called _Feicheng_. It is a cling and, though rather inconvenient for eating, is very large and luscious, coming into market about the middle of September and lasting for a month or more."

"30482[56]--From about 50 miles southwest of Tsinan, Shantung, China. _Feicheng._ Chinese flat peach. This is a large, luscious cling, very much esteemed by the Chinese."

"21990[57]--From Kianchau, Shantung, China. A flat, juicy, white peach of fine taste. Chinese name _Pai pien tao_."

"21992[58]--From near Chiningchou, Shantung, China. A flat, pale-fleshed peach, juicy but somewhat insipid."

"22352[59]--From Shifengtse Temple, west of Peking, Chihli, China. Said to be medium sized, very flat, and of reddish color. Chinese name _Pien tau_."

_White stone._--"8340[60]--From Canton, China. _Pak Wat tim t'o._ A slightly sweet, white stone variety of rather small size, preferred by some to the _Ying tsui t'o_, which, it is said, has too sweet a flavor. It has no beak like the latter, but is a typical south Chinese shape, according to Dr. J. M. Swan, of the Canton Hospital, who very kindly described this variety."

"24915[61]--_Hung wat to_ (red-stone peach)."

"24916[62]--_Paak wat to_(white-stone peach)."

"The _Hung wat to_ is a new variety and so recognized by the Chinese. From what I can gather they believe the _Paak wat to_ to be the best, but have some trees of the _Hung wat to_. The _Hung wat to_ seems to blossom much quicker than the _Paak wat to_."

_Winter peaches._[63]--"The so-called winter peaches they have here are all clingstones, somewhat watery and not very fine in general."

"30340[64]--From Chinese Turkestan is said locally to keep for several months."

"Cuttings of nectarines from Chinese Turkestan. Among these are some from an altitude of 5000 feet, large, late ripeners, and keeping and shipping well, and one, number 30359,[65] recommended by the British consul, Mr. Macartney, is said to keep for several weeks after being fully ripe."

"30482[66]--Cuttings of the Feitcheng peach from about fifty miles southwest of Tsinan, Shantung, China. It is a late variety, coming into market about the middle of September or October. It is reported to have such unusual keeping qualities, that it can be kept, when wrapped in tissue paper, until February. Though a cling stone it is luscious, sweet and aromatic, and of unusual size, reaching a pound in weight and is so prized by the Chinese that as much as 15 cents apiece is paid for it in the region where it is grown; every year the Feitcheng peaches are sent as a present to the Imperial court in Pekin."

The evidence given encourages the belief that in the native peaches of China may be found all of the characters that distinguish cultivated peaches wheresoever grown. The smooth-skinned peach, or nectarine, from the evidence at my command, is not common in eastern China but in Chinese and Russian Turkestan it is evidently one of the commonest fruits. Neither does yellow flesh appear to be a common character of peaches of eastern China but is now and again mentioned so that it may be put down as existing in the peaches of the region. Bear in mind that the accounts given are but random ones taken by persons not more interested in peaches than in other agricultural products and covering, of course, but a very small part of the vast region under the dominion of China. There is, no doubt, much to be learned about the peaches of Asia in future explorations.[67]

In America, at least, certain characters of peaches, as flatness, smooth skin, red flesh and prolonged beak are looked upon as comparatively new in this fruit. At any rate, varieties having these relatively rare characters are spoken of as sports and pomologists, as we shall see, not infrequently announce the date of birth of one or another of these characters. Now, a careful examination of the evidence, scant though it is, will carry conviction to all that none of the prominent characters of peaches have originated within the period covered by history--all exist in China and probably have so existed since time beyond record.

The size and color of the blossoms are distinguishing characters of races and varieties of cultivated peaches, less valuable in classification than the fruit-characters we have been discussing only because they are less numerous. Peach-blossoms fall into four very distinct kinds: Petals large and pink; petals intermediate in size and pink or red; petals small and red or reddish; and petals large and white. Through the United States Department of Agriculture, I am in possession of copies of nine letters from Foreign Seed and Plant Introduction correspondents of the United States Department in China who had been asked to report on the size and color of peach-blossoms in the parts of China in which they lived. The information thus obtained is most interesting but space forbids considering it further at present than to say that it indubitably establishes the fact that peaches with the four kinds of blossoms are found in China. This further encourages the belief, just set forth, that the essential characters of peaches are old, of great fixity and originated in China at a time in the past on which it would be idle to conjecture.

It is interesting to note that there are peaches in China with at least two characters not found in any American varieties. Two varieties are mentioned as having "white stones." There is no peach in America with stones that could be described as white though several early white-fleshed peaches have light-colored stones. This character is unimportant and seems, from the brief descriptions of the varieties having such stones, not to be correlated with other especially desirable characters, yet such a peach would, at least, add an interesting novelty to the flora of this fruit. The other character, that of late keeping, appears to have more value. A peach that would "keep for several months" or one ripening in September "that can be kept, when wrapped in tissue paper, until February," is highly desirable. No doubt through the efforts of the workers in the United States Department of Agriculture we shall sooner or later be growing these peaches in America.

As the probable home of the peach, we have given China so much space in this discussion of the peach in Asia that we can now but briefly summarize what is known of this fruit in other Asiatic countries.

_The peach in Japan._--From _Fruit Culture in Japan_[68] it is patent that the peach is one of the leading fruits of the country. In number of varieties of the several fruits grown in Japan the peach is exceeded only by the persimmon--ninety-five peaches and two nectarines being listed, all having Japanese names. The following account gives some idea of the peach-industry as carried on in Japan:

"There are a number of varieties of our native peaches and nectarines. From the extreme south of Formosa to Hokkaido, local forms are cultivated side by side with Western and Chinese varieties, which are all much superior to ours in all respects. During the past twenty years, the growing of introduced peaches has replaced the native one with striking rapidity. Their growing seems to be naturally limited in Hokkaido to the south part up to about 43 degrees N. L. The mid-season and late varieties do not properly ripen there and peach growing consequently does not develop to be a profitable industry in Hokkaido. Peaches are rather easy to cultivate and seem to be less susceptible to the effects of climate, than apples, provided suitable sites and soil be given. Consequently peach orchards are found scattered here and there all over the country. For the peaches there is no difference between the two longitudinal halves of Japan. At present, large orchards of peaches, regularly planted and trained, are found on the alluvial lowlands and hillsides. The heavy rainfall during June and July causes an overluxuriance of growth and considerable portion of the fruits drop down without reaching maturity. To prevent the damage from the parasites our people have learned through experience the important operation of bagging. On the loamy soils, good qualities of fruits may be attained, but the growers are accustomed to prefer light sandy soils to insure success. Sometimes rather dry hillsides give good results."

_The peach in Turkestan and Persia._--We shall become too deeply involved if we attempt to trace the cultivation of peaches in all of the countries of Asia. A sentence each suffices for other regions than China and Japan, excepting Turkestan, where the peach seems preeminently at home, and must therefore have more than a word.

The peach is commonly grown in Mongolia and Cochin China.[69] Several kinds of peaches are cultivated in the north of India.[70] The peach requires the greatest care to ensure success in the north-east of India.[71] A correspondent of the United States Department of Agriculture at Kashgar, British India, describes a nectarine grown there wanting "a hot but only a short summer."[72] Meyer, Agricultural Explorer for the United States Department of Agriculture, found a variety of peach growing at Kirin, Mongolia, not far from Vladivostock, which he says "is the most northern locality where I have yet found peaches."[73] These references might be multiplied but enough are given to show that the peach grows wild or cultivated wherever the climate permits in central and eastern Asia.

The peach seems to be quite as much at home, as highly prized and as commonly grown in Russian Turkestan, northern Persia, Trans-Caucasia and Asia Minor--the countries of western Asia--as in the eastern part of the continent. The Chinese early discovered trade routes over the mountains from the center of Asia to Kashmir, Bokhara and northern Persia. What more probable than that in remote times the seeds of peaches should have been carried westward from China and the peach thus have been introduced into western Asia where it at once found a congenial soil and climate. The peach-tree is so easily raised from the pit that its diffusion along routes of travel must have been very rapid.

Of many accounts of the peaches of this region, long and short, perhaps the following from Mr. Albert Regel gives, in the space to be spared, the best idea of the extent of the peach-region in western Asia and the races represented--races rather than varieties, for of the latter there must be legions since we are told the trees are grown from seed. Regel,[74] a physician by vocation, lived in Turkestan for nine years and collected fruits and flowers as an avocation. He seems to have penetrated every nook and corner of Turkestan and adjacent regions. Of peaches and nectarines he says: