Dr Desmond Layne, associate professor of pomology, tree fruit specialist, and state program team leader for horticulture at Clemson University

Stone Fruit

New Peach Book Coming Soon

Desmond R. Layne
dlayne@clemson.edu

The Peach book coverSunlight penetration into the tree canopy affects fruit color. It may be a single leaf blocking part of a peach that is well exposed to sunlight (the leaf was removed for this picture), or it may be shoots blocking sunlight for fruit near the bottom of the tree.

For the past four years, along with my friend and colleague, Dr. Daniele Bassi (University of Milan, Italy), I have been shepherding a massive project to develop a new, comprehensive textbook devoted totally to the peach. This book, The Peach: Botany, Production and Uses, was delivered to the publisher (CAB International, U.K.) in October of 2007 and should be available in 2008.

This book brings together the collective effort of world authorities (49 in total) from eight countries to provide the single most complete source of information on peaches that has ever been published. Twenty-two chapters summarize the state-of-the-art and provide historical perspective relevant to this vital world fruit crop. There are nearly 300 color photographs and more than 43 tables present in the 850- page volume.

A preview of the table of contents is listed below, including chapter titles and authors:

  1. Botany and Taxonomy (D. Bassi and R. Monet)
  2. History of Cultivation and Trends in China (H. Huang, Z. Cheng, Z. Zhang and Y. Wang)
  3. Classical Genetics and Breeding (R. Monet and D. Bassi)
  4. Genetic Engineering and Genomics (A.G. Abbott, P. Arus, and R. Scorza)
  5. Low-Chill Cultivar Development (B.L. Topp, W.B. Sherman, and M.C.B. Raseira)
  6. Fresh Market Cultivar Development (W.R. Okie, T. Bacon, and D. Bassi)
  7. Processing Peach Cultivar Development (T.M. Gradziel and J.P. McCaa)
  8. Rootstock Development (G.L. Reighard and F. Loreti)
  9. Propagation Techniques (F. Loreti and S. Morini)
  10. Carbon Assimilation, Partitioning, and Budget Modeling (T.M. DeJong and A. Moing)
  11. Orchard Planting Systems (L. Corelli Grappadelli and R.P. Marini)
  12. Crop Load Management (R.P. Marini and G.L. Reighard)
  13. Nutrient and Water Requirements of Peach Trees (R.S. Johnson)
  14. Orchard Floor Management Systems (T.J. Tworkoski and D.M. Glenn)
  15. Diseases of Peach Caused by Fungi and Fungal-Like Organisms: Biology, Epidemiology, and Management (J.E. Adaskaveg, G. Schnabel, and H. Förster)
  16. Diseases Caused by Prokaryotes – Bacteria and Phytoplasmas (D.F. Ritchie, M. Barba, and M.C. Pagani)
  17. Viruses and Viroids of Peach Trees (M. Cambra, R. Flores, V. Pallás, P. Gentit, and T. Candresse)
  18. Insects and Mites (D.L. Horton, J. Fuest, and P. Cravedi)
  19. Nematodes (A.P. Nyczepir and D. Esmenjaud)
  20. Preharvest Factors Affecting Peach Quality (C.H. Crisosto and G. Costa)
  21. Ripening, Nutrition, and Postharvest Physiology (A. Ramina, P. Tonutti, and B. McGlasson)
  22. Harvesting and Postharvest Handling of Peaches for the Fresh Market (C.H. Crisosto and D. Valero).

A unique feature of the book is the chapter on China. For the first time in the English language, the history of cultivation and production trends in China is presented with quotations from historical references dating back to 1100 B.C. This information is vital since China is the center of origin of the peach, and it has the longest continuous history of peach cultivation in the world. In addition to that, it currently leads both world peach production and total acreage at more than 7.5 million metric tons and more than 600,000 hectares, respectively. China currently produces 44% of the total world peach supply and has 45% of the world’s peach producing acreage.

The Peach will be available at a 30% discount off the retail price to readers of American/Western Fruit Grower magazine for “early-bird” orders placed before March 31, 2008. The discounted price will be $189 and orders can be placed online at orders@cabi.org. Be sure to use the promotional code “XAB” when placing your order so that you may receive this special discount.

Download the printable PDf of this article (92 KB)

This column by Dr. Desmond R. Layne, “New Peach Book Coming Soon” appeared in the January 2008 issue of The American Fruit Grower magazine on page 48.

Desmond R. Layne, Ph.D., is an associate professor of pomology, tree fruit specialist, and state program team leader for horticulture at Clemson University. He is also president of the American Pomological Society.

For more information, go to www.clemson.edu/peach.