Mother of Gardens
PEACH TREE
Prunus persica
Thousands of years before Wilson's time, China was exporting many of
its botanical treasures, and the peach tree is a prime example. Its
species name,
persica, springs from the mistaken belief among European
naturalists that the plant was native to Persia. In fact, botanists
now think that peaches were introduced to the Middle East and
Mediterranean regions along the Silk Road as long ago as 2000 B.C.
Other flowering trees with edible fruits, including oranges, may
have traveled a similar path.