'White Rock' and 'White County' Peaches

Abstract

‘White Rock’ and ‘White County’ are the second and third white-fl esh peach releases from the University of Arkansas peach [Prunus persica (L.) Batsch] breeding program. ‘White River’ was released in 2002 (Clark and Moore, 2003). The program began in the 1960s (Clark et al., 1999) and included an objective to develop adapted white-fl esh peach cultivars for on-farm, local, and shipping sales. ‘White Rock’ is an early midseason maturity clingstone with nonmelting fl esh that is low-acid in fl avor, and very fi rm when ripe and overripe. ‘White County’ is a midseason freestone with low-acid fl avor and fi rm fruit. These cultivars have moderate to good resistance to bacterial spot [caused by Xanthomonas campestris pv. pruni (Smith) Dye] and should provide high-quality, low-acid options for growers in areas where bacterial spot disease is a concern. These cultivars also expand options for growers in the middle to the upper-southern U.S. and other areas of the world with similar climatic conditions. The names selected continue a series of white-fl esh peaches named for noteworthy geographic locations in Arkansas. ‘White Rock’ is named for White Rock Mountain in Franklin County, Ark., and ‘White County’ for the county by that name in east-central Arkansas.