In the field, there stands a flower peach tree, covered in flowers from its base to its head. Its gracefulness is simply overwhelming. The flower peach is a variety of peach that has been cultivated for its ornamental flowers, and it reaches its peak bloom season around the time when cherry blossoms bloom. Peaches have been considered to bring good luck and ward off disasters in China since ancient times, and they are said to have been introduced to Japan during the Yayoi period. There are two types of peach trees: those that produce fruit and those that produce flowers. Fruit-bearing peaches have been cultivated and used as food since ancient times, but during the Heian period, the Peach Festival on March 3rd was established, and the viewing of peach blossoms became popular. Although peaches have been beloved by the Japanese people since ancient times, the cultivation of ornamental flower peach trees did not begin until the Edo period. Today, there has not been much progress in the breeding of flower peach varieties, and most of the cultivated horticultural varieties are those developed during the Edo period. There are several tree forms, including upright, drooping, and broom-like, and some varieties do produce fruit, but they are not suitable for consumption.

野っ原に、足元から頭のてっぺんまで花びっしりの花桃が立っています。その艶やかさには圧倒されるばかりです。花桃は、花を観賞するために改良された桃で、桜の花の咲く時期に前後して開花の最盛期を迎えます。桃は古来より中国では災いを除き、福を招くとされてきました。日本への渡来は古く、弥生時代といわれています。桃には実桃と花桃があり、実桃は古い時代から栽培され、食用に供されてきましたが、平安時代には3月3日の桃の節句が祝われ、桃の花が観賞されるようになりました。このように桃は太古から日本人に親しまれてきましたが、観賞用の花桃として改良が行われるようになったのは江戸時代に入ってからです。現在も花桃の品種改良はあまり進んでおらず、栽培されている園芸品種には江戸時代に作出されたものがほとんどです。樹形には立ち性、枝垂れ性、ほうき立ち性などがあり、実ができる品種もありますが、食用には適していません。