Prunus, persica - Plant Encyclopedia Results

Leaf: Alternate, simple, lanceolate, serrated, 3 to 6in long, often curved along midrib, shiny dark green above, paler below.

Flower: Pink to lavender, 1in across, solitary but often close together, appearing in early spring.

Fruit: Fuzzy drupe, 3in across, yellow and red, hard, ribbed pit inside encloses the seed, very delicious and juicy, ripens in mid summer.

Twig: New growth is red and green, later turns gray-brown, buds are blunt and gray fuzzy, spur shoots present.

Bark: Dark gray, initially smooth with elongated lenticels, later splits and becomes irregularly scaly.

Form: A small tree up to 15ft with a spreading crown.

The numerous cultivars include both fruiting and flowering peaches with double flowers. Prunus persica var. nectarina is almost identical to the Peach in habit and flowers but its fruit are smooth skinned, mostly smaller and with a subtly different flavor.

The Nectarine is classified as a sub-species of Peach.

Nectarine fruit is similar to Peach fruit except that the Nectarine fruit tend to be smooth and have more red color on the fruit surface. Nectarine fruits may be either yellow or white-fleshed.