Nectarine

Nectarine, common name for a tree, a variety of the common peach, and for its smooth-skinned fleshy fruit. The fruit differs from the peach in skin texture, aroma, and flavor but closely resembles it in color and in size and shape of seed. Peach seeds occasionally give rise to trees that bear nectarines, and nectarine seeds may give rise to trees bearing either peaches or nectarines. Because it is impossible to know which type of tree will result from the planting of a nectarine seed, buds from branches on which nectarines have grown are grafted to peach trees. Nectarines are grown extensively for commercial purposes in California.

Scientific classification: The nectarine belongs to the family Rosaceae. It is classified as Prunus persica variety nucipersica.