Short answers, pulled from the story.
The peach originated in China, not Persia as its scientific name suggests. Research published in 2014 traced domestication to Zhejiang Province on the central east coast of China, with the oldest archaeological peach stones found at the Kuahuqiao site near Hangzhou, dating cultivation to around 6000 BCE.
The International Peach Genome Initiative, a consortium of researchers from the United States, Italy, Chile, Spain, and France, sequenced the peach genome using a plant called Lovell. They announced the sequencing in April 2010 and published the full results in 2013. The sequence comprises 227 million nucleotides on eight chromosomes, with 27,852 protein-coding genes identified.
Nectarines belong to the same species as peaches, Prunus persica, and differ only in lacking the surface fuzz (trichomes) of a standard peach. The smooth skin results from a recessive allele; multiple genetic studies confirm nectarines are not a crossbreed with plums. The distinction is commercial rather than biological.
In 1864, Kit Carson led a U.S. Army expedition to Canyon de Chelly in Arizona with the aim of breaking the Navajo's livelihood. Carson's forces destroyed thousands of peach trees. A soldier present described them as the best peach trees he had ever seen. The Navajo returned to the canyon after signing a treaty in 1868 and had restored many orchards by the 1870s and 1880s using saved pits and resprouted stumps.
In Chinese culture the peach is a symbol of longevity. The deity Shòu Xīng, a god of long life, is typically depicted holding a peach. Ancient rulers were preceded by sorcerers carrying peach rods to ward off evil, and peach wood was placed over doors on New Year's Eve for protection. The peach was regarded as possessing more vitality than any other tree because its blossoms appear before its leaves.
China produces the most peaches by a wide margin. In 2023, China accounted for 65% of world production, which totaled 27.1 million tonnes of peaches and nectarines combined. The next leading country, Spain, produced less than 5% of the world total.