Good morning!
I hope you're starting the week in good spirits and – if you're like us here in Valencia – trying to survive the July heat. So today, we're going to do what we do best: talk about fruit.
Last week I told you about Salvador's Piel de Sapo Melon. This week, I want to tell you about another fruit that seems designed by nature to refresh you during these times, when the sun is at its strongest.
🍑 Today I'm telling you all about Alex's peaches.
A peach is that fruit where, when you take the first bite, you don't know if you're going to end up eating it or getting soaked. It's sweet, juicy, and has an aroma that already smells like vacation. It may not cure the heat, but at least it wonderfully disguises it.
For a reason, like the melon, it's a summer fruit. And we don't just say that for poetic reasons, but because peaches are literally only available in summer.
The trees produce their fruit in the warmest months of the year, so if you ever find yourself buying one in the middle of December… well, it's better not to eat it expecting magic.
Now, behind that lovely fruit, there's a lot of work involved.
The peach tree has a cycle that lasts almost all year. First, it spends the winter accumulating cold (yes, the tree needs to "get cold" to activate properly), then it blooms, producing beautiful pink bouquets, and finally starts to bear its small fruits.
From flowering to harvest, it usually takes between 100 and 120 days, depending on the variety and climate. It's a fruit that takes its time.
And now for the curious part: if you ever stroll through Alex's peach fields in June or July, you might be surprised to see the trees full of small papers hanging like festive lanterns.
But no, they're not celebrating anything special (although the peach deserves it), it's just that each of those papers is an individually covered peach.
Yes, you read that right. Alex takes the trouble to place a special paper bag over each fruit.
And why is this fruity origami done? Good question.
Protecting each fruit with paper has three very clear advantages: first, it prevents the fruit fly from stinging it (every farmer's archenemy in summer); second, it protects it from direct sun and sunburn; and finally, it prevents rain, wind, or a mischievous twig from marking its skin.
This results in a beautiful, healthy, and natural peach, without having to spray anything strange on it.
Yes, it's a lot of work. Imagine manually placing (and then removing) a small bag on each peach. But when you then pick one and taste it, so flavorful, fresh, and with that balanced sweetness… it's totally worth it. Well… that is if you don't eat it before finishing the harvest 😅
They say it is the fruit of the gods in Chinese mythology. That its juice brought longevity. I don't know if that's true, but if we survive this summer thanks to it, they were at least somewhat right.
So now you know, if you see a beautiful peach this summer, behind that silky skin are months of work, care, and a farmer who at some point went into a field to put a small paper bag on it.
Remember that our harvests are limited. The last blueberries of the season are left, and we continue to harvest increasingly sweet and red mountain cherries.
I hope you have a sweet and juicy week like the peaches!
A hug from the field,
