Why Do Peaches Have Fuzz?
- from Alexandra Chilson
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- Wellsboro Area High School
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- 2994 views
Have you ever thought about the reason peaches have natural fuzz? The scientific name for a peach is " prunus persica" . There is no definite explanation on why this strange fuzz is on peaches, just a number of theories.
One theory is that the fuzz shields the peach from ravenous insects that want to tear through their gentle covering. Their skin is very thin and fragile matched to other fruits. This means they bruise and decay far more easily, and give farmers a hard time selling them. Sometimes precipitation also can drench the outer membrane of the peach to make it rot. Fuzz from the peach helps avert this by amassing water droplets, so it stays separate from the skin.
The origins of the peach isn’t directly known but scientist theorize that they came from China. Even though it is a very widespread fruit in our country and everywhere else on the globe. The state the US associates the most with peaches is Georgia, but surprisingly it is only the third in peach production. California is in the lead, with South Carolina right on its tail.
Sometimes, peaches are mistaken for nectarines. This very common since they are typically located next to each other at grocery stores, and its analogous look and taste except nectarines don’t have any fuzz. They do belong to the same classifications of species however, but the peaches we know and love today have a dominant gene giving them their distinct fuzz. The recessive gene in nectarines give it the suave fuzz-free skin. Unfortunately, nectarines bruise far easier than their peach cousins.