Peach

Introduction
• Peach (Prunus persica L.) belongs to the family Rosaceae.
• 2n=16, belongs to subgenus Amygdalus
• Old botanical name: Amygdalus persica and Persica vulgaris
• Peach requires the warmest climate of all the temperate fruits
• According to De Candole, peach was cultivated in China even in
2000 B.C.
• The main limiting factor in the cultivation of peach is its leaf curl
disease which has drastically limited its cultivation in India
• Canned peaches are in a great demand in European and Arab
countries.
• It is a fairly rich source of minerals, iron, protein, vitamin B, etc.
Ascorbic acid is also present in peach in small quantity.
 Introduction
Nutritive value of peach
Sl.No Constituents Quantity
1 Moisture 90.1 %
2 Protein 1.5 %
3 Fat 0.2 %
4 Mineral matter 0.6 %
5 Carbohydrate 7.6 %
6 Calcium 0.01 %
7 Phosphorus 0.03 %
8 Iron 1.7 %
9 Calorific value 38/100 g of pulp
10 VitaminA Trace
11 Vitamin B1 20 mg/100g of pulp
12 Vitamin C 1 mg/100 g of pulp
13 Riboflavin 1mg/100 g of pulp
 Introduction

Peach Nectarine
Prunus persica Prunus persica var. nucipersica
 Soil & Climate
• Well drained sandy-loam soil is the best
• Soils prone to flood should be avoided
• Before establishing peach orchard, it should be ensured that there
is no hard or calcarious pan up to 2.5 to 3.0 m below the soil, or else,
it will severely restrict the root development of the trees and they
will remain dwarf and stunted
• A soil pH of 6.5 to 7.5 is preferred for peach cultivation.
• Peach can be grown successfully in warm valleys and
submontane regions.
• Almost all the peach varieties require chilling temperature of
7°C or a little less for certain hours without which they will fail to
flower.
• Hill regions at elevations of 1,100 to 2,200 m above sea level
are suitable for its cultivation in Uttar Pradesh.
 Soil & Climate
Chilling requirement of some important varieties of peach
Sl.No. Varieties Chilling requirement (in hours)
1 Flordasun 300
2 Shan-e-Punjab 300
3 Sunred 300
4 Florda red 75
5 Bonita 500
6 Elberta 850
7 Hell heaven 850
8 Red heaven 950
9 Sungold 550
10 Florida valley 200
 Varieties
• For colder conditions the peach cultivars July Elberta, Elberta,
Peshwari, Quetta, Burbank and Stark Earliglo are well adopted.
• Low-chilling cultivars viz. Flordasum, Flordared, Shan-e-Punjab,
Sharbati and Sunred (nectarine) have become popular in subtropical
belts of U.P. and Punjab States.
• J&K: July Elberta, Elberta, Quetta, Flordasun, Shan-e-Punjab,
Sharbati
• H.P: Alton, July Elberta, JH Hale, Sharbati, Shan-e-Punjab, Burbank
• U.P: Sharbati Safeida, Flordasun, Shan-e-Punjab
• Varieties are again categorize into A. Early varieties, B. Mid-season
& C. Late season

• Nectarine varieties: Sunred, Sunrise, Sunripe, Nectared, Sunlight,

Snow Queen, May Fire, Silver King, Red Gold
Paradelux is one of these varieties in which have been developed in Ramgarh area of
Nainital district of Uttaranchal
 Propagation
• Sexual and asexual propagation
• Sexual propagation:
• Not true to type but use for raising rootstock.
• For breaking seed dormancy, they are stratified by keeping them in
alternate layers of moist sand at a temperature below 7.3°C for a
period of 10-12 weeks. Meantime, care should be taken that seeds
should not get dried, otherwise they will again go back to
dormancy.
• In other methods, seeds are directly sown in the raised bed during
October-November so that they get their required low temperature
during winter and germinate in the following spring. Seed treatment
with 2,500 to 5,000 ppm Thiourea or Ethrel also enhances seed
germination.
 Propagation
• Vegetative propagation: Shield budding and whip grafting are
generally practiced as vegetative methods of propagation for
peaches. Peach seedlings are considered as the best rootstock for
peaches.
• In sub-tropical condition seedlings of peach cultivar Saharanpur
No.6 has been found to be a promising rootstock for peach
cultivar Sharbati.
• Inter specific (crossed between two species) hybrids of almond
crossed with peach, (Prunus behimi) are useful rootstocks in
alkaline soils.
• Shield budding which is done in April-May or September
• Whip grafting is common which is done in December-January
 Planting
• Planting is done in winter during December to January when the
peach trees are in leafless condition
• While transporting the seedlings, the root portion should be covered
with moist mud ball in gunny bag to prevent them from drying
before planting.
• For planting peaches, pits of 1 x 1 x 1 m in size are dug and are
refilled with the fertile top soil mixed with 40 kg well-rotten
farmyard manure per pit. Benzene hexachloride (BHC) or Aldrin
should be added to each pit to prevent the attack of termites.
• Planting distance: 6.2 x 6.2 m
7.6 x 7.6 m (Very fertile soil)
 Fertilizer Application
Schedule of fertilizer application of peach
Sl.No. Age (years) FYM (kg) Fertilizer (g/plant)
Calcium Super Murate of
Ammonium Nitrate phosphate Potash
(CAN)
1 1 10 360 190 150
2 2 15 720 380 300
3 3 20 1080 570 450
4 4 25 1440 762 600
5 5 30 1800 950 750
6 6 & above 35 2000 1200 1000
•Super phosphate, muriate of potash and farmyard manure should be applied
during December, and half of nitrogen should be applied in January before
flowering and remaining half after the fruitset.
•If the peach plants are deficient in iron, they should be supplied with 1.5 kg of
ferrous sulphate and 750g slaked lime dissolved in 500 litres of water. This
solution should be sprayed over plants.
•There are two critical stages for irrigation in peaches i.e. the period of flowering
to fruit set and one month period preceding fruit maturity.
 Training and Pruning
• Training is usually carried out in open centre system.
• At the time of planting, the stem is cut to about 61 cm from the ground
and three to four branches are allowed to develop on it. These main
branches should be well spaced and distributed on all sides
• Shoots other than the three selected ones should be removed during the
first summer. This process may be repeated twice or thrice to allow the
selected shoots to proper growth.

• The young bearing trees should be pruned every year by thinning out
the shoots. This type of pruning helps keep the fruiting wood lower
down, thus keeping the crop within the reach of picking. Pruning also
increases fruit size and colour, thus getting higher price in the market.
• The pruning of peach orchard should be started by the middle of
December and over by the end of January before the new growth starts.
 Tatura Trellis
• The Tatura Trellis was conceived and developed from principles
elucidated by research which aimed to identify factors that limit fruit
yield in conventional orchards.
• The fundamental objectives to be identified were: For maximum early
yield; a system that minimizes pruning, but would allow peach trees,
without dwarfing rootstocks, to be planted and managed at densities in
excess of 1,500 trees per ha.
• For maximum photosynthetic productivity; maximum light
interception per unit land area with a canopy within which leaves and
fruit are uniformly distributed.
• For maximum harvest index; systems of cultivation and management
that minimize vegetative vigour after trees have occupied their allotted
space (Chalmers and Ende, 1989).
• One of the highest yielding systems. Trees are planted about 6 x 1
m apart (1668 trees/ha), bearing starts in the second year. The
main framework consists of Y-shaped leaders which are tied with
the wires.
OPEN CENTER

TATURA TRELLIS
Fruiting Stage
 Flowering and Fruiting
• Most of the peach varieties, except J.H. Hale, are self-pollinated. Therefore,
there is no problem for the pollination of peach.

• In peach, flowering buds emerge from the basal portion of the shoot, while
the buds emerging from the apex of the shoot do not bear any flowers. These
flowering buds are formed in a year old shoot and apex non-flowering buds
give rise to new shoots or branches. However, some flowering buds
sometimes fail to flower and give rise to new branches.

• The bearing buds are round in shape and they are often in pair in a node. In
between of these buds there is a small vegetative bud which is shorter than a
flowering bud, round in shape and are pointed. It has been observed that
weak branches generally bear only one flowering or vegetative bud.

• Formation of flowering buds in peach begins in latter part of July and the
initiation of floral parts take place inside the bud itself. It is a slow process
and the flower is perfectly developed when it blooms. Development of buds
and flowering in peach largely depends on the variety as well as the climate
of the region.
 Harvesting and Yield
• In peach, the harvesting period ranges from April to July. It depends on the
variety as some varieties are early ripening and are ready for harvesting as
early as in April, whereas there are varieties which start ripening in the last
week of June and, as such, delayed harvesting.
• The best way to judge the maturity is to examine the ground colour (skin under
colour) of the fruit. When the ground colour begins turning yellow from green
in the varieties with yellow flesh and white in white fleshed varieties, it is an
indication of fruit maturity. Such firm ripe peaches plucked at maturity can be
held for few days and are thus suitable for sending to distant markets and still
develop full flavour and quality. Peaches should be picked, handled and hauled
carefully. Picking containers should be rigid and shallow. These should be lined
with canvas.
• All peaches do not mature and ripe at the same time, therefore, fruits should be
picked three or more times. Each time only the largest and most mature fruits
are taken; the others are left to gain size and colour. With a little experience
with different cultivars, it is not so difficult to judge the proper stage of
maturity with a fair degree of accuracy.
• The commercial life of peach tree is about 20 years. Generally, 60-80 kg
average yield is obtained from a single tree and thus, 200 to 250 quintal from
the one hectare peach orchard.
 Storage and Marketing

• Peach is a highly perishable fruit, therefore, after harvesting it cannot be kept

for a longer period at normal condition. In cold storage, peaches can be stored
for 2-4 weeks at 0 to 1.66°C and 80 to 85% relative humidity.
• In India, cold storage of peaches is not in vogue. Therefore, after harvesting,
they are packed in wooden baskets and sent to local markets by trucks.
 Plant Protection

Pests
• 1. Peach leaf curl aphid
• 2. Fruit-fly
Diseases
• 1. Bacterial gummosis
• 2. Root rot disease
• 3. Leaf curl disease