Peach tree

A small fruit tree originating from China, the peach tree is known for its delicious and juicy white, yellow or pink fruit with velvety or smooth skin. After reaching Persia, thanks to the silk route, it then conquered Europe, particularly France, where it was grown in the gardens at Versailles. Here, thirty or so varieties were created for Louis XIV, a great lover of the fruit with its many symbols and virtues. According to Chinese legend, the Queen Mother of the West (Xiwangmu) had peach trees in her orchard, which flowered every 3,000 years and produced peaches that could immortalise those who ate them. Today in China and even Japan, its flowers are still associated with fertility and love and, more generally, with fidelity and virginity. The tree has delicate, dentate leaves, which have a subtle almond fragrance and its sap were used in the Middle Ages to reduce dark spots on the skin.