Knowing the characteristics of the flowers of the plants we grow will be very useful, especially if we intend to get fruits and / or new specimens at zero cost. On this occasion, I am going to tell you about the peach blossom, a fruit tree that is grown in temperate regions of the world.
It is very interesting, since it is beautiful all year round: with or without leaves, with its flowers ... even with its fruits! But, How is your flower exactly?
What is the peach tree like?
The peach tree, whose scientific name is Prunus, is a deciduous fruit tree native to Afghanistan, China, and Iran. Reaches a height of 6 to 8 meters, which is why it can be had in all types of gardens, regardless of whether they are small or large, since in addition its roots are not invasive and it has a rather thin trunk (about 30-35cm).
But let's go to what interests us: its flower. The flowers of this plant can be solitary or twin (appear in pairs). They have numerous bracts, which are modified leaves that protect the entire flower. The sepals (flower part that forms the calyx) are whole erect and the petals end in a rounded tip, of a strong pink color.
The ovary can be pubescent or glabrous. This will give rise to the fruit we all know as a peach, which is a subglobose drupe with a very fleshy mesocarp (what we call the "flesh"). To learn more about this type of fruit, you can consult the article on the classification of fruit trees.
How is it pollinated?
The task of pollination falls to pollinating insects, such as bees for example. They, As soon as they see an open flower, they head towards it to feed on the nectar it contains, but in doing so they fill their legs and antennae - and perhaps the rest of their body - with pollen.. Some of that pollen will fall on another flower, although it only needs a single pollen grain to fertilize itself.
Then the ovary will grow, ripen and give rise to the fruit. But beware, for everything to go smoothly, the tree will need water and food (organic fertilizer) constantly, that is why it is very important that we water it between 2 and 4 times a week and fertilize it with guano, compost, mulch u others from spring to autumn. To maximize flower growth, it is advisable to follow some tips detailed in the article on how to enhance peach blossoms.