Zhaohui peaches (Prunus persica Batsch) were treated with 0 (CK), 1, 10 or 100 μmol L-1methyl jasmonate (MeJA) vapor at 20℃ for 24 h before stored at 0℃ for 35 d. The untreated fruits showed chilling injury (CI) symptoms after 4 wk of storage, as indicated by increased fruit firmness and reduced extractable juice, which is referred as leatheriness. Treatment with 1 and 10 μmol L-1 MeJA promoted normal ripening and softening, maintained higher levels of extractable juice, titratable acidity, pectinesterase (PE)and polygalacturonase (PG) activities, inhibited increases in fruit fresh weight loss, decay incidence, electrolyte leakage and MDA content, and improved color development, thereby preventing chilling injury symptoms development and maintaining edible quality. MeJA treatment also delayed the climacteric rise in respiratory rate, but promoted ethylene production during the later period of cold storage, suggesting that ethylene may involve in CI development of peaches. These results indicate that 1 and 10 μmol L-1 MeJA treatments could be used to reduce CI development and decay incidence in peaches.