This document provides information on peach breeding and characteristics. It discusses the scientific classification of peaches, describes peach flower and bud structures, and lists breeding objectives such as developing cultivars with low chilling requirements. It also outlines ideal peach tree characteristics and fruit traits. The document details breeding methods used such as introduction and selection of varieties from other regions, hybridization, and clonal selection. It discusses modern approaches like using molecular markers for genetic evaluation and development of peach germplasm collections.

1. 1

2. AN Assignment on
‘PEACH BREEDING’
Submitted by
Mr. Pawan Nagar
Reg. No.- 04-2690-2015
M.Sc (Hort.) Fruit Science
1st semester
AAU, Anand.

3. Peach
Scientific classification
B.N : Primus persica
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Rosales
Family: Rosaceae
Genus: Prunus
Subgenus: Amygdalus
Species: P.persica

4. FLOWERING
 The peach flower is termed perigynous.
 The receptacle is cup-shaped
and encloses the ovary.
 The air space between the receptacle
and ovary is thought to provide some
insulation during spring frosts.
 Following bloom, the cup-like receptacle
dries and is called the shuck, which
splits and falls off as the fruit grows.
Diagram of a peach flower.

5. FLOWER BUDS :
 The flower buds of peach develop in
leaf axils on current season's growth.
 These buds will bear the following
season's fruit. The terminal bud on a
peach shoot is vegetative.
 Flower buds on peach trees are said to
be "simple" or "pure," as they contain
only flower tissue, which contrasts with
the apple's mixed buds from which both
flower and leaf tissues arise.
Arrangement of
flower and vegetative
buds on a peach shoot

6. FLOWER BUDS :
 In the peach, one flower comes from each bud.
 In winter, examination of a peach shoot about 1-1/2 feet in
length reveals several bud arrangements . Near the upper
end, single buds (one at a node) of two types predominate.
There are single, small, pointed vegetative buds, and the
somewhat larger, rounder, more pubescent (hairy) flower
buds. In the lower two thirds of the shoot, many of the
nodes have three buds arranged side by side.
 The two outer flower buds are larger and rounder; the
center leaf bud is frequently very inconspicuous, small,
and pointed.
Arrangement of
flower and vegetative
buds on a peach shoot

7. Breeding objective of PEACH :
 The main objective of peach (Primus persica) improvement for
low chilling areas would be to develop cultivars with low
chilling requirement.
 Recent investigations in peach breeding are concerned less with the
inheritance of qualitative characters and more with an understanding
of the transmission of quantitative traits.
 Extension of season of maturity remains an important objective in
many breeding programs.

8. Breeding objective of PEACH :
 Tolerance to high summer temperature.
 Maturity between 60 and 70 days after full bloom,
 firm flesh, freedom from loose fiber, attractive colour,
 Non browning of flesh, resistance to root-knot nematode, iron
chlorosis and water logging.
 For processing peaches, firmness of flesh, freedom from loose
fiber, attractive colour and non-browning of flesh are the
important characters to be improved.

9. Ideal Characteristic of PEACH :
 The peach tree, Prunus persica, is a deciduous tree.
 Prunus persica grows to 4–10 m (13–33 ft) tall and 6
in. in diameter.
 The leaves are lanceolate, 7–16 cm (2.8–6.3 in) long,
2–3 cm (0.79–1.2 in)broad, pinnately veined.
 The flowers are produced in early spring before the
leaves;
 They are solitary or paired, 2.5–3 cm diameter, pink,
with five petals.
 The fruit has yellow or whitish flesh, a delicate
aroma, and a skin that is either velvety (peaches) or
smooth (nectarines) in different cultivars.

10. Ideal Characteristic of Peach :
 The flesh is very delicate and easily
bruised in some cultivars, but is fairly firm
in some commercial varieties, especially
when green.
 The single, large seed is red-brown, oval
shaped, approximately 1.3–2 cm long, and
is surrounded by a wood-like husk.
 Peaches, along with cherries, plums and
apricots, are stone fruits (drupes).
 There are various heirloom varieties,
including the Indian peach, which arrives
in the latter part of the summer.

11. Breeding Method of PEACH :
Introduction and selection :
 A large number of low chilling peach varieties, e.g. Floradasun,
Sun Red and Sun Gold and some other selections,
 Floradared and Flordabelle were introduced at the PAU,
Ludhiana, during late sixties from Florida and California states
in USA.
 Of these introductions, Flordasun, Flordared, Sun Red and 16-
33 (named Shan-I-Punjab) became very popular. Of the later
introductions from USA, TA 170, known as 'Partap', has been
identified as early (7 days earlier than Flordasun).

12. Breeding Method of PEACH :
Introduction and selection :
 Its flesh is yellow, firm, with red colouration and better keeping
quality. Another two introductions from Florida, Flordaprince
and Earligrande, have been recommended for commercial
cultivation for the plains of Punjab and adjoining areas.
 Flordaprince is an early ripening, whereas Earligrande is a
mid-season variety.
 Clonal selection
 'Sharbati' is a chance seedling selected at Saharanpur.

13. Hybridization
 Redhar is a cross between ‘Halehaven’ and ‘Kalhaven bred’ at
USA.
 Interspecific hybrdization has been also attempted in peaches
especially in the development of rootstock resistant to
nematodes.
 Nemagcrad, a hybrid between P.persica x P.davididasa is a
widely used root-knot nematode resistant rootstock, which is
immune to Meloidogyne incognita.

14. Hybridization
 Planned hybridization work on peach was started in 1957 at
Saharanpur. Peach Saharanpur Prabhat (Sharbati x Flordasun) was
released.
 Fruits of this variety are attractive, sweet, maturing at least 4 days
earlier than Flordasun.

15. Approach for crop improvement of Peach :
 Development of Peach Molecular marker & their use for finger
print & for the evaluation of Genetic resources.
 The modern peach cultivar should be propagated through
Vegetative propagation.
 Many Prunes microsatellites have been developed in Peach.
 Many of them were tested for their usefulness to fingerprint
Peach varieties.
 Several sets of Prunus microsatellite markers were chosen and
proven to be highly effectives for this purpose.
 Single nucleotide polymorphism also development progress in peach .

16. Peach Germplasm Collection :
 5 species & 16 varieties were identified within a genus Prunus.
 3 national germplasm of peach identified in Beijing, Zhengzhou and
Nanjing.
 Peach germplasm collection occurred in Shanghai,Dalian and
Shanxi.
 More than 1000 germplasm accessions have been collected and
maintained to safeguard again genetic erosion.
 A number of foreign cultivars were introduced to china.
 Screening and evolution effects at the repositories have resulted in a
marketed increase in the understanding of special genotypes and the
effect use of genotypes.

17. Bio-Technology including to Peach :
 Micro propagation
Regeneration
 Soma clonal variation and selection in-vitro
 Transformation
 Enzyme and molecular marker