How Delicious Are Northern Peaches? Southerners Would Never Guess!

The peach, the most underestimated northern fruit!

Every summer, large quantities of peaches hit the market, with the southern "Three Peach Beauties"—Yangshan, Fenghua, and Longquanyi—stealing the spotlight as internet sensations, captivating peach lovers nationwide.

But China's peaches aren’t exclusive to the south, nor are southern peaches necessarily the best. Peach trees thrive across the country, with the north being a major production hub. Just look at the vast peach blossoms covering northern hills in spring—whether in time or space, northern peaches far surpass their southern counterparts. Even the Shanghai Nanhui honey peach, revered as the patriarch of southern peaches, was originally introduced from the north during the Ming Dynasty by scholar Gu Mingshi.

The dazzling universe of northern peaches.

In 2020, the top three peach-producing regions in China were Shandong, Henan, and Shanxi, while the combined output of Jiangsu and Zhejiang was only a third of Shandong’s. With such abundance, peaches are available from March to November—Feicheng Buddha peaches from Shandong, Shenzhou honey peaches from Hebei, Shihezi flat peaches from Xinjiang, Shanxi’s nectarines, Qin’an honey peaches from Gansu... a continuous, spectacular parade of varieties.

Whether in cultivation area or yield, northern peaches far exceed southern ones.

Southern peaches are rare treats—for southerners, they’re a seasonal luxury available for just over a dozen days a year, a premium gift costing hundreds per box. But for northerners, peaches are an endless summer memory from childhood, a market staple sold by the basket, a humble sweetness on the tongue for just a few yuan.

From early summer to frost-kissed autumn, from the Liaodong Peninsula to the vast inland, northern China stages an unending rotation of peach varieties all year round...

Feicheng Buddha peaches, Qingzhou honey peaches, Golden Autumn Red Honey

Shandong, China’s top peach-producing province. Statistics show it leads in peach cultivation area, with a 2021 output of 4.493 million tons—23.7% of the national total, firmly ranking first.

In midsummer, Zaozhuang, Shandong, is busy packaging honey peaches.

But Shandong’s peaches shine not just in quantity but in their dazzling variety and exquisite flavors. March and April bring early nectarines like Lichun and Chunguang; May and June introduce Zaojiubao and Zaobaifeng; July and August see massive harvests of Dajiubao, Laishan honey, Qiufeng honey, Laizhou fairy peaches, Chengyang fairy peaches, and Hongganlu—claiming half of Shandong’s peach output. The season closes in September and October with Feicheng Buddha peaches and Qingzhou honey peaches, the undisputed crown jewels of Shandong peaches.

Mengyin Rainbow flat peaches, rich in aroma and sweet in flesh,

Now hot-selling at our flavor boutique—click the image above to order.

Among Shandong’s peaches, the most alluring are Feicheng peaches. Located in central Shandong, Feicheng has supplied peaches to royalty since the Ming Dynasty. As early as 1726, the "Shandong General Chronicle" noted: "The finest peaches grow in Feicheng."

Feicheng peaches on the branch can weigh up to 900 grams at harvest.

Also called Buddha peaches, Feicheng peaches are renowned for their size and flavor, with the largest reaching 900 grams—nearly two pounds—earning them the title "King of Peaches." Ancient food bloggers already sang their praises: "Ripe Feicheng peaches are bowl-sized, with skin thin as paper. To eat, place one on a plate, pierce a hole with chopsticks, and sip the nectar—so fragrant and sweet it pierces the heart. When finished, only a fingertip-sized pit and a sheet of peach skin remain... truly a divine fruit."

Beyond this, Feicheng peaches were a global sensation as early as the Qing Dynasty. The 1908 "Feicheng Local Records" stated: "Only the peach is most famous; even foreign nations now know of Feicheng peaches..." By then, they were celebrated domestically and abroad. Today, their fame endures: in 2000, Feicheng set a Guinness World Record as the "World’s Largest Peach Orchard."

The Liutai Peach Blossom Scenic Area in Feicheng, with peach trees covering the hills.

Beyond Feicheng, east across Mount Tai lies Qingzhou, home to crisp-sweet Qingzhou honey peaches. One of ancient China’s Nine Provinces and the heart of Qi State, Qingzhou was also Shandong’s early political center. Steeped in history, it’s a famed forest city with over 40% forest coverage, where mountains, rivers, hills, and plains intertwine in fertile soil, lush vegetation, and babbling streams. "Between sea and mountain lies Qingzhou"—and it’s here that Qingzhou honey peaches thrive.

Qingzhou Honey Peach, the pinnacle of late-ripening crisp peaches.

Qingzhou Honey Peach and Feicheng Peach are two entirely different styles of peaches. The former is small, averaging 60–80 grams per fruit—less than 1/10 the size of a Feicheng Peach—but its flesh is crisp, firm, and chewy, offering a satisfying crunch that stands out among softer varieties. A late-ripening crisp peach, Qingzhou Honey Peach typically hits the market around the Mid-Autumn Festival (lunar August 15), with the latest variety, Winter Snow Honey, appearing during frost season, allowing northerners to enjoy peaches freely in winter.

Mengyin Golden Autumn Red Honey, so sweet it defies belief.

Heading south from Qingzhou, we arrive at Mengyin, nestled in the heart of the Taiyi Mountains. With an annual output of nearly 1 million tons, Mengyin County is China’s top peach-growing region, boasting 106 detectable varieties. But the most famous is the Golden Autumn Red Honey, whose sweetness is almost unbelievable with every bite.

Golden Autumn Red Honey is a specialty variety cultivated over 20 years by Shandong growers. Its standout feature is its extreme sweetness: while regular honey peaches measure around 10° Brix, and Japan’s highest-grade "premium" honey peaches reach only 12–13°, Golden Autumn Red Honey surpasses ordinary peaches by about 6°, easily hitting 18° Brix—leaving other peaches far behind.

Golden Autumn Red Honey: perfect whether crisp or soft.

Beyond its sweetness, Golden Autumn Red Honey excels in texture. At 80% ripeness, it’s crisp and sweet; fully ripe, it becomes fragrant, soft, and juicy. In 2007, a Golden Autumn Red Honey peach entered the Guinness Challenge for Chinese Agricultural Products, setting a world record with an astounding 28.6° Brix sweetness.

Shenzhou Honey Peach, Pinggu Giant Peach, Shanxi Nectarine.

North China: China’s hidden peach paradise. Combined, Hebei, Henan, and Shanxi provinces account for one-third of the nation’s peach output, featuring stars like Shenzhou Red Honey (Hebei), Pinggu Giant Peach (Beijing), and Shanxi’s nectarine universe—each spectacular in its own right.

Hebei’s peaches were documented as early as the Han Dynasty in *Shenzhou Local Records*: "Shenzhou’s native product is the peach, once offered as tribute... Among northern peaches, Shenzhou’s are finest, called honey peaches."

Shenzhou lies northwest of Hengshui—yes, besides its infamous high schools, Hengshui also produces Shenzhou Red Honey. With over 2,000 years of cultivation history, the area was even named "Peach County" in 195 BCE during Emperor Gaozu’s reign for its peach production.

Today, Shenzhou Honey Peach has over a dozen varieties, with Red Honey and White Honey being the best. Red Honey, with its yellow flesh blushed red, features thin skin, fine texture, abundant juice, and intoxicating fragrance. Its hallmark? "No juice spills when cut; one bite releases a flood"—the juice stays locked in the flesh until bitten, then flows like liquid honey.

Shenzhou Honey Peach: thin-skinned, fine-fleshed, juicy, and sweet.

Now hot-selling at our flavor boutique—click the image above to purchase.

Pinggu Giant Peach: Imperial-quality peaches at the capital’s doorstep.

Though regional "peach crowns" often became tributes, Beijing itself grows exceptional peaches—in Pinggu. Locals flock here for spring blossom viewing and summer peach picking. Nestled against mountains on three sides within the Hai River Basin, Pinggu enjoys a temperate microclimate. Its rushing rivers, dense water networks, and volcanic soil create ideal conditions for this 220,000-acre peach paradise.

Thanks to Pinggu, Beijingers enjoy blossoms in spring and peach fragrance in summer.

Pinggu grows over 200 peach varieties, most famously the Jubao—large, hydrating, plump-fleshed, offering soft-yet-resilient texture and a sweet-tart, complex flavor profile.

For Chinese nectarines, look to Shanxi; for Shanxi nectarines, look to Yuncheng.

Many avoid peaches due to fuzz allergies, but Yuncheng in Shanxi offers a solution: glossy-skinned nectarines. As a key nectarine hub, Shanxi’s Xinjiang County in Yuncheng hosts China’s largest premium nectarine base, growing varieties like Shuguang, Zhongyou No.4, Zhongyou No.5, and Red Double Happiness, earning its title as "China’s Nectarine Capital."

The harvest scene of ten thousand acres of field nectarine orchards in Xinjiang, Shanxi.

Zhongyou No. 4 is the cream of the crop among nectarines, offering two textures in one fruit—first crisp, then soft. Freshly picked butter nectarines have slightly firm, elastic flesh, perfect for those who prefer crisp peaches. With a few days of patience, they transform into another delicacy. The paper-thin skin peels away effortlessly, revealing golden, juicy flesh. A gentle squeeze releases translucent juice from the dense fibers, accompanied by a rich, sweet aroma with a hint of natural tartness, leaving a lingering, complex flavor on the palate.

Shanxi nectarines are crisp first, then soft—two textures in one fruit.

Dali flat nectarines, Qin'an honey peaches, Dalian yellow peaches

The sweetness forged by the climates of Northwest and Northeast China

Peaches from the Northwest and Northeast are rare elsewhere. Few outside locals think of these regions for peaches, but only locals know just how delicious they are.

Shaanxi Dali flat nectarines: The hybrids of the peach world

When it comes to Shaanxi fruits, most think first of Lintong’s pomegranates and persimmons, but Weinan Dali is Shaanxi’s hidden fruit haven. Ancient Dali, called Tongzhou, borders the Yellow River to the east and the Wei River to the south, with fertile soil. As the saying goes, “The land west of the river for millennia, the granary of Guanzhong”—this is the place.

Shaanxi Dali flat nectarines are small but exceptionally sweet.

Weinan Dali is a renowned peach-producing region in Shaanxi, home to varieties like China’s Red Peach, Chinese Longevity Peach, and King Qin Peach. The most unique is the Dali flat nectarine, famed for its high sweetness and juiciness. Scientifically named "Red Satin," these small, flat fruits resemble oversized buttons. Combining the sweetness of honey peaches, the tenderness of yellow peaches, the brightness of nectarines, and the shape of flat peaches, this four-in-one hybrid is a standout in the peach world.

“Heaven has the Queen Mother’s flat peaches; earth has Qin'an’s honey peaches.”

West of Shaanxi lies Gansu, historically known as the Hexi Corridor. Qin'an, in southeastern Gansu, boasts deep soil and significant day-night temperature differences, making it a famous fruit-growing region. Its peach cultivation area, yield, and quality rank first in Gansu. A local saying goes, “Heaven has the Queen Mother’s flat peaches; earth has Qin'an’s honey peaches.”

Qin'an has a long history of peach cultivation, dating back to the Han Dynasty. The Ming Dynasty’s *Qin'an Annals* note, “Qin'an abounds in peaches,” with verses like “Home west of Long River, a thousand peach trees at the door,” depicting its splendor. Today, Qin'an’s honey peach orchards span 102,500 mu, and “Qin'an Honey Peach” is a nationally protected geographical标志 product.

Xinjiang flat peaches: The Queen Mother’s peaches

Following the Hexi Corridor westward into the heart of Eurasia brings you to Xinjiang, a paradise of flavors. Xinjiang is a major producer of flat peaches, with Ürümqi and Shihezi being the best.

Shihezi is home to the largest flat peach planting base in China.

The 143rd Regiment in Shihezi is the country’s largest flat peach cultivation base. With 50 years of effort and favorable climate, Shihezi transformed “barren land” into a “fruit haven,” with flat peaches as a star crop. Shihezi’s natural advantages—over 12 hours of sunlight, significant day-night temperature swings, and Tianshan glacier meltwater—yield large, deep-yellow-skinned peaches with firm, golden flesh, uniform in size, juicy, and crystal-clear.

Nourished by Tianshan snowmelt, Xinjiang flat peaches are exceptionally sweet.

The pristine growth environment, enriched by Tianshan snowmelt, makes local flat peaches extraordinarily delicious, earning Shihezi the title “Hometown of Chinese Flat Peaches.” Their fragrance isn’t overpowering but a gentle, flowing sweetness that slowly envelops you. The flesh is soft, tender, and melts in your mouth, with exceptionally high juice content—each bite is a burst of liquid.

Dalian yellow peaches: The “life totem” of Northeast China

Every time they have a headache or fever, Northeasterners turn to yellow peach cans, their "totem of life," and the source of this mysterious power is Dalian. Located at the tip of the Liaodong Peninsula, Dalian is a premium yellow peach production area in China. Most of the fresh yellow peaches and canned yellow peaches consumed by Northeasterners come from here, with the landmark product Jinzhou Yellow Peach being particularly fragrant.

Dalian yellow peaches are delicious but not transport-resistant.

The reason they are made into canned yellow peaches is not that Dalian yellow peaches taste bad, but that early varieties couldn’t withstand transportation, so they had to be processed into longer-lasting canned peaches. Later, as the canned yellow peach industry developed, Dalian even cultivated two specialized varieties for canning: "Huanglu" and "Fenghuang," which won the Major Scientific Achievement Award at the 1978 National Science Conference. The processed "Four Star" and "Red Plum" canned yellow peaches also won national silver medals.

In the 1990s, during the peak of Dalian’s canned yellow peach industry, production bases were established in Dalian, Yingkou, and other areas, reaching such density that almost every town had a cannery. Cans of yellow peaches not only became the "taste of home" for Northeasterners but were also exported worldwide, becoming a globally renowned symbol of Dalian.

The mysterious power from the Northeast: canned yellow peaches.

The Northern peach universe is vibrant. Summer is here, and Northern peaches are in season. Which peaches have you tried this year?

Northern honey peaches are in the midst of harvest.