I can’t remember a time when I didn’t know how to use smell and a gentle touch to determine the ideal ripeness, how to lightly lift and twist each peach from its stem so as not to gouge the fragile flesh, how to know which rosy fruit was ready for market, which for delivery, and which for eating off the tree. Unlike an apple or a pear, a meager span of days—three, perhaps four—determines the crucial moment to pick and eat a peach.
