Apricot
Apricot fruit
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae Division: Magnoliophyta Class: Magnoliopsida Order: Rosales Family: Rosaceae Genus: Prunus Subgenus: Prunus Section: Armeniaca Species: P. Plants are living Organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. The flowering plants or angiosperms ( Angiospermae or Magnoliophyta) are the most widespread group Magnoliopsida is the Botanical name for a class of Flowering plants By definition the class will include the family Magnoliaceae, but its For other meanings see Rosales (disambiguation. Rosales is an order of Flowering plants including nine families The Rosaceae or Rose family is a large family of Plants with about 3000-4000 species in 100-160 genera Prunus is a Genus of Trees and Shrubs including the Plums cherries, Peaches Apricots and A plum or gage is a stone fruit Tree in the genus Prunus, subgenus Prunus. armeniaca
Binomial name
Prunus armeniaca L.

The Apricot (Prunus armeniaca, "Armenian plum" in Latin, syn. Armeniaca vulgaris Lam. Carl Linnaeus (Latinized as Carolus Linnaeus, also known after his ennoblement as, May 23 new style (13 May old style 1707 who laid the foundations for This article deals with the general meaning of the term "synonym" ) is a species of Prunus, classified with the plum in the subgenus Prunus. Prunus is a Genus of Trees and Shrubs including the Plums cherries, Peaches Apricots and A plum or gage is a stone fruit Tree in the genus Prunus, subgenus Prunus. In Biology, a subgenus is a Taxonomic rank directly below Genus. The native range is somewhat uncertain due to its extensive prehistoric cultivation, but most likely in northern and western China and Central Asia, possibly also Korea and Japan. China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National Central Asia is a region of Asia from the Caspian Sea in the west to central China in the east and from southern Russia in the north to northern Pakistan in the south Korea is a geographic area composed of two sovereign countries a civilization and a former state situated on the Korean Peninsula in East Asia. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Japan topics. ^[1][2]

Description

Apricot tree in Central Cappadocia, Turkey

Fresh ripe fruit

It is a small tree, 8–12 m tall, with a trunk up to 40 cm diameter and a dense, spreading canopy. Cappadocia (or Capadocia, Turkish Kapadokya, from Greek: Καππαδοκία / Kappadokía which in turn is from the Persian: The leaves are ovate, 5–9 cm long and 4–8 cm wide, with a rounded base, a pointed tip and a finely serrated margin. In Botany, a leaf is an above-ground Plant organ specialized for Photosynthesis. In Botany, the following terms are used to describe the shape of plant leaves: Acicular ( acicularis) Slender and pointed needle-like The flowers are 2–4. A flower, also known as a bloom or Blossom, is the reproductive structure found in Flowering plants (plants of the division Magnoliophyta, also 5 cm diameter, with five white to pinkish petals; they are produced singly or in pairs in early spring before the leaves. The fruit is a drupe similar to a small peach, 1. The term fruit has different meanings dependent on context and the term is not synonymous in Food preparation and Biology. In Botany, a drupe is a Fruit in which an outer fleshy part ( Exocarp, or skin and Mesocarp, or flesh surrounds a shell (the pit The peach ( Prunus persica) is a species of Prunus native to China that bears an edible juicy fruit also called a peach 5–2. 5 cm diameter (larger in some modern cultivars), from yellow to orange, often tinged red on the side most exposed to the sun; its surface is usually pubescent. A cultivar is a cultivated Plant that has been selected and given a unique name because of its decorative or useful characteristics it is usually distinct from similar The single seed is enclosed in a hard stony shell, often called a "stone", smooth except for three ridges running down one side. A seed (in some plants referred to as a kernel) is a small embryonic Plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat usually with some stored ^[1][3]

Cultivation and uses

History of cultivation

The Apricot was first cultivated in China in about 3000 BC. ^[4] In Armenia it was known from ancient times, having been brought along the Silk Road;^[4] it has been cultivated there so long it is often thought to be native there. Armenia (Հայաստան transliterated: Hayastan,) officially the Republic of Armenia (Հայաստանի Հանրապետություն Hayastani The Silk Road, or Silk Routes, are an extensive interconnected network of Trade routes across the Asian continent connecting East South and Western Asia with the ^[5][6] Its introduction to Greece is attributed to Alexander the Great,^[4] and the Roman General Lucullus (106-57 B. Greece (Ελλάδα transliterated: Elláda, historically, Ellás,) officially the Hellenic Republic (Ελληνική Δημοκρατία Alexander the Great ( or, Mégas Aléxandros; July 20 356 BC June 10 or June 11 323 BC also known as Alexander III of Macedon (el Ἀλέξανδρος Γ' For his grandfather and namesake see Lucius Licinius Lucullus. C. E. ) also exported some trees, cherry, white heart cherry and apricot from Armenia to Europe. Subsequent sources were often much confused over the origin of the species. Loudon (1838) believed it had a wide native range including Armenia, Caucasus, the Himalaya, China and Japan. John Claudius Loudon ( April 8, 1783 – December 14, 1843) was a Scottish botanist, garden and cemetery designer and garden Armenia (Հայաստան transliterated: Hayastan,) officially the Republic of Armenia (Հայաստանի Հանրապետություն Hayastani The Caucasus ( also referred to as North Caucasus) is a geopolitical region located between Europe Asia & Middle East China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Japan topics. ^[7] Nearly all sources presume that because it is named armeniaca, the tree must be native to or have originated in Armenia as the Romans knew it. For example, De Poerderlé asserts: "Cet arbre tire son name de l'Arménie, province d'Asie, d'où il est originaire et d'où il fut porté en Europe . . . . " ("this tree takes its name from Armenia, province of Asia, where it is native, and whence it was brought to Europe . . . . ")^[8] There is no scientific evidence to support such a view. Today the cultivars have spread to all parts of the globe with climates that support it.

Apricots have been cultivated in Persia since antiquity, and dried ones were an important commodity on Persian trade routes. The Persian Empire was a series of Iranian empires that ruled over the Iranian plateau, the original Persian homeland and beyond in Western Asia Apricots remain an important fruit in modern-day Iran where they are known under the common name of Zard-ālū (Persian زردالو). For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Iran topics.

Apricots are also cultivated in Egypt and are among the common fruits well known there. This article is about the country of Egypt For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Egypt topics. The season in which apricot is present in the market in Egypt is very short. There is even an Egyptian proverb that says "Fel meshmesh" (English "in the apricot") which is used to refer to something that will not happen because the apricot disappears from the market in Egypt so shortly after it has appeared. Egyptians usually dry apricot and sweeten it then use it to make a drink called "amar el deen".

More recently, English settlers brought the apricot to the English colonies in the New World. British colonization of the Americas (including colonization under the Kingdom of England and Kingdom of Scotland before the 1707 Acts of Union created The Thirteen Colonies were part of what became known as British America, a name that was used by Great Britain until the Treaty of Paris (1783 recognized the Most of modern American production of apricots comes from the seedlings carried to the west coast by Spanish missionaries. The Viceroyalty of New Spain (Virreinato de Nueva España was a name given to the Viceroy -ruled territories of the Spanish Empire in North America, Almost all U.S. production is in California, with some in Washington and Utah. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the California ( is a US state on the West Coast of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. Washington ( is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. The State of Utah (ˈjuːtɔː or) is a western state of the United States. ^[9].

Many apricots are also cultivated in Australia, particularly South Australia where they are commonly grown in the region known as the Riverland and in a small town called Mypolonga in the Lower Murray region of the state. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country The Riverland, also known as Big River Country, is a region of South Australia. The Murray River, or River Murray and sometimes informally referred to as the "Mighty Murray" is Australia 's largest River. In states other than South Australia apricots are still grown, particularly in Tasmania and western Victoria and southwest New South Wales, but they are less common than in South Australia. Tasmania is an Australian island and state of the same name It is located south of the eastern side of the Continent, being separated from it by Bass

Cultivation

Fresh apricots on display.

Dried organic apricot, produced in Turkey. The colour is dark because it has not been treated with sulfur dioxide (E220).

Although often thought of as a "subtropical" fruit, the Apricot is native to a continental climate region with cold winters. Continental climate is a Climate that is characterized by Winter Temperatures cold enough to support a fixed period of Snow cover each Year The tree is slightly more cold-hardy than the peach, tolerating winter temperatures as cold as −30 °C or lower if healthy. The peach ( Prunus persica) is a species of Prunus native to China that bears an edible juicy fruit also called a peach The limiting factor in apricot culture is spring frosts: They tend to flower very early, around the time of the vernal equinox even in northern locations like the Great Lakes region, meaning spring frost often kills the flowers. Frost is the solid deposition of Water vapor from saturated air An equinox is the event of the Sun passing over the Earth's equator in its annual cycle The Laurentian Great Lakes are a chain of freshwater lakes located in eastern North America, on the Canada–United States border. The trees do need some winter cold (even if minimal) to bear and grow properly and do well in Mediterranean climate locations since spring frosts are less severe but there is some cool winter weather to allow a proper dormancy. A Mediterranean climate is one that resembles the Climate of the lands in the Mediterranean Basin, which includes over half of the area with this climate type world-wide Dormancy is a period in an organism's life cycle when growth development and (in animals physical activity is temporarily suspended The dry climate of these areas is best for good fruit production. Hybridisation with the closely related Prunus sibirica (Siberian Apricot; hardy to −50°C but with less palatable fruit) offers options for breeding more cold-tolerant plants. In Biology, hybrid has two meanings The first meaning is the result of interbreeding between two animals or plants of different taxa. ^[10]

Apricot cultivars are most often grafted on plum or peach rootstocks. Grafting is a method of asexual Plant propagation widely used in Agriculture and Horticulture where the tissues of one Plant are encouraged to A cutting of an existing apricot plant provides the fruit characteristics such as flavour, size, etc. , but the rootstock provides the growth characteristics of the plant. Apricots and plums can hybridize with each other and produce fruit that are variously called pluots, plumcots, or apriums. Apricots are grown commercially in the United States, primarily in California and Washington.

Apricots have a chilling requirement of 300 to 900 chilling units. They are hardy in USDA zones 5 through 8. Some of the more popular cultivars of apricots include 'Blenheim', 'Wenatchee Moorpark', 'Tilton', and 'Perfection'.

There is an old adage that an apricot tree will not grow far from the mother tree. The implication is that apricots are particular about the soil conditions in which they are grown. They prefer a well-drained soil with a pH of 6. 0 to 7. 0. If fertilizer is needed, as indicated by yellow-green leaves, then 1/4 pound of 10-10-10 fertilizer should be applied in the second year. Granular fertilizer should be scattered beneath the branches of the tree. An additional 1/4 pound should be applied for every year of age of the tree in early spring, before growth starts. Apricots are self-compatible and do not require pollinizer trees, with the exception of the 'Moongold' and 'Sungold' cultivars, which can pollinate each other. Apricots are susceptible to numerous bacterial diseases including bacterial canker and blast, bacterial spot and crown gall. They are susceptible to an even longer list of fungal diseases including brown rot, Alternaria spot and fruit rot, and powdery mildew. Other problems for apricots are nematodes and viral diseases, including graft-transmissible problems.

Production trends

Apricot output in 2005

Top Ten Apricot Producers — 2005 (1,000 tonnes)
Turkey	390
Iran	285
Italy	232
Pakistan	220
France	181
Algeria	145
Spain	136
Japan	123
Morocco	103
Syria	101
World Total	1916
Source:[11]

Turkey is the leading apricot producer,^[12] followed by Iran. Turkey (Türkiye known officially as the Republic of Turkey ( is a Eurasian Country that stretches For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Iran topics. Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest Pakistan () officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country located in South Asia, Southwest Asia, Middle East and This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. Algeria ( ar [[Arabic]] الجزائر, Al Jaza'ir ælʤæˈzæːʔir Amazigh: ⴷⵥⴰⵢⴻⵔ Dzayer) officially the People's Spain () or the Kingdom of Spain (Reino de España is a country located mostly in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Japan topics. Morocco (المغرب "al-Maghrib" officially the Kingdom of Morocco (المملكة المغربية is a country located in North Africa Syria ( سوريّة or) officially the Syrian Arab Republic (Arabic ar الجمهورية العربية السورية Turkey (Türkiye known officially as the Republic of Turkey ( is a Eurasian Country that stretches In Armenia apricots are grown in Ararat Valley. The Ararat plain, one of the largest of the Armenian Plateau, stretches west of the Sevan basin at the foothills of the Gegham mountains

Kernels

Main article: Apricot kernel

Seeds or kernels of the apricot grown in central Asia and around the Mediterranean are so sweet that they may be substituted for almonds. An Apricot kernel ( Prunus armeniaca, "Armenian plum" in Latin refers to the kernel of a species of Prunus classified with the plum in the subgenus Central Asia is a region of Asia from the Caspian Sea in the west to central China in the east and from southern Russia in the north to northern Pakistan in the south The Mediterranean Basin refers to the lands around and surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea. The Almond ( Prunus dulcis, syn Prunus amygdalus Batsch Amygdalus communis L The Italian liqueur Amaretto and amaretti biscotti are flavoured with extract of apricot kernels rather than almonds. Amaretto is a sweet Almond -flavoured Liqueur of Italian origin Biscotti is Italian for " Biscuits " In North America the word has been taken to refer to a specific type of biscuits Oil pressed from these cultivars has been used as cooking oil. Cooking oil is purified Fat of Plant or Animal origin which is liquid at room temperature

Medicinal and non-food uses

Cyanogenic glycosides (found in most stone fruit seeds, bark, and leaves) are found in high concentration in apricot seeds. A cyanide is any Chemical compound that contains the cyano group (C≡N which consists of a Carbon Atom triple-bonded to a In Botany, a drupe is a Fruit in which an outer fleshy part ( Exocarp, or skin and Mesocarp, or flesh surrounds a shell (the pit A seed (in some plants referred to as a kernel) is a small embryonic Plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat usually with some stored Bark, also known as periderm is the outermost layer of stems and Roots of Woody plants such as Trees It overlays the Wood and consists In Botany, a leaf is an above-ground Plant organ specialized for Photosynthesis. Laetrile, a purported alternative treatment for cancer, is extracted from apricot seeds. Amygdalin (from Greek: grc-Latn amygdálē “almond” C20H27NO11 is a Glycoside initially isolated from the seeds The term alternative medicine, as used in the modern western world encompasses any healing practice "that does not fall within the realm of conventional Medicine. As early as the year 502, apricot seeds were used to treat tumors, and in the 17th century apricot oil was used in England against tumors and ulcers. See also Cancer A tumor or tumour is the name for a swelling or lesion formed by an abnormal growth of cells (termed neoplastic As a means of recording the passage of Time, the 17th Century was that Century which lasted from 1601 - 1700 in the Gregorian calendar England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Ulcers are healing wounds that develop on the skin mucous membranes or eye However, in 1980 the National Cancer Institute in the USA claimed laetrile to be an ineffective cancer treatment. The National Cancer Institute (NCI is part of the United States Federal government's National Institutes of Health. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the ^[13]

In Europe, apricots were long considered an aphrodisiac, and were used in this context in William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, and as an inducer of childbirth, as depicted in John Webster's The Duchess of Malfi. William Shakespeare ( baptised A Midsummer Night's Dream is a romantic comedy by William Shakespeare, suggested by " The Knight's Tale " from John Webster (c 1580 &ndash c 1634 was an English Jacobean Dramatist, and a late contemporary of William Shakespeare. The Duchess of Malfi is a Macabre, tragic play, written by the English dramatist John Webster and first performed in

Due to their high fiber to volume ratio, dried apricots are sometimes used to relieve constipation or induce diarrhea. Effects can be felt after eating as little as three.

Etymology

The scientific name armeniaca was first used by Gaspard Bauhin in his Pinax Theatri Botanici (page 442), referring to the species as mala armeniaca "Armenian apple". Gaspard Bauhin, or Caspar Bauhin ( January 17, 1560 – December 5, 1624) was a Swiss Botanist who wrote Most believed and many still believe that it came from Pliny the Elder; however, it is not used by Pliny or any other classical author, even in Late Latin. Gaius or Caius Plinius Secundus, ( AD 23 – August 25, AD 79 better known as Pliny the Elder, was an ancient Author Vulgar Latin (in Latin sermo vulgaris, "folk speech" is a Blanket term covering the popular Dialects and Sociolects of the Latin Linnaeus took up Bauhin's epithet in the first edition of his Species Plantarum in 1753. Carl Linnaeus (Latinized as Carolus Linnaeus, also known after his ennoblement as, May 23 new style (13 May old style 1707 who laid the foundations for Species Plantarum ("The Species of Plants" was first published in 1753, as a two-volume work by Carl Linnaeus. ^[14]

The epithet probably is derived from an etymological identification of a tree mentioned in Pliny with the apricot. Pliny says "We give the name of apples (mala) . . . to peaches (persica) and pomegranates (granata) . . . . "^[15] Later in the same section he states "The Asiatic peach ripens at the end of autumn, though an early variety (praecocia) ripens in summer - these were discovered within the last thirty years . . . . "

From this praecocia comes the standard etymology of "apricot". The classical authors connected armeniaca with praecocia:^[16] Pedanius Dioscorides' ". Pedanius Dioscorides (Πεδάνιος Διοσκορίδης ca . . Ἀρμενιακὰ, Ῥωμαιστὶ δὲ βρεκόκκια"^[17] and Martial's "Armeniaca, et praecocia latine dicuntur". Marcus Valerius Martialis (known in English as Martial) (March 1 40 AD - ca ^[18] Putting together the Armeniaca and the mala obtains the well-known epithet, but there is no evidence the ancients did it; Armeniaca alone meant the apricot.

Accordingly the American Heritage Dictionary under apricot derives praecocia from praecoquus, "cooked or ripened beforehand", becoming Greek πραικόκιον "apricot" and Arabic al-barqūq "the plum". The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language ( AHD) is an American Dictionary of the English language published by The English name comes from earlier "abrecock" in turn from the Middle French abricot, from Catalan abercoc. Middle French (le moyen français is a historical division of the French language which covers the period from (roughly 1340 to 1611. Catalan ˈkætəˌlæn ( català kətəˈla or) is a Romance language, the national and official language of Andorra, and a co-official ^[19] Both the latter and Spanish albaricoque were adaptations of the Arabic, dating from the Moorish occupation of Spain. Arabic (ar الْعَرَبيّة (informally ar عَرَبيْ) in terms of the number of speakers is the largest living member of the Semitic language However, in Argentina and Chile the word for "apricot" is damasco, which probably indicates that to the Spanish settlers of Argentina the fruit was associated with Damascus in Syria. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Argentina topics. Chile, officially the Republic of Chile ( Spanish:) is a country in South America occupying a long and narrow Coastal strip wedged between the Damascus ( دمشق,, also commonly known as الشام ash-Shām) is the capital and largest city of Syria. ^[20]

The anecdotal evidence is the only link between the apricot and Pliny's tree, but even if true, the origin of the word is not the origin of the tree. The Romans had no idea why the tree was called armeniaca and presumed as did later botanists that it was "from Armenia", whatever that should mean. Scientifically nothing at all about the evolution or production of the wild tree or any of its cultivars or about the native range at the time of the Romans or any other time in history is implied. At best the tradition reflects Roman literary opinion concerning some now obscure horticultural events.

In Armenian it is called tziran (ծիրան), in Chinese it is called xìng (杏), in Hindi it is called zardalu, and in Urdu it is called khúbánī (ﺧﯘﺑﺎﻧﯽ). The Armenian language (hy հայերեն լեզու hajɛɹɛn lɛzu —, conventional short form) is an Indo-European language spoken by the Armenian Hindi ( Devanāgarī: hi [[wiktहिन्दी हिन्दी]] or hi [[wiktहिंदी हिंदी]] IAST:, IPA:) is Urdu ( ur '''{{Nastaliq اردو}}''' trans Urdū, historically spelled Ordu) is a Central Indo-Aryan language Urdu is a standardised

In culture

The Chinese associate the apricot with education and medicine. China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National Chuang Tzu, a Chinese philosopher in 4th century BCE, had told a story that Confucius taught his students in a forum among the wood of apricot. For the book with the same name see Zhuangzi (book Zhuangzi ( was an influential Chinese philosopher who lived around the 4th The 4th century BC started the first day of 400 BC and ended the last day of 301 BC. Confucius ( lit " Master Kung " September 28, 551 BC - 479 BC) was a Chinese thinker and social philosopher

In The Wizard of Oz, the Cowardly Lion sings, "What puts the ape in the apricot? Courage!"

Apricots were used by the Australian Aborigines as an aphrodisiac. The Wizard of Oz is a 1939 American musical - Fantasy film mainly directed by Victor Fleming and based on the 1900 children’s Indigenous Australians are descendants of the first known human inhabitants of the Australian continent and its nearby islands. A special tea was prepared from the apricot stone, while the fruit was crushed and smeared over the erogenous regions.

Among tank-driving soldiers, apricots are taboo, by superstition. Tankers will not eat apricots, allow apricots onto their vehicles, and often will not even say the word "apricot". This superstition stems from Sherman tank breakdowns purportedly happening in the presence of cans of apricots. ^[21]

Dreaming of apricots, in English folklore, is said to be good luck.

The Turkish idiom "bundan iyisi Şam'da kayısı" (literally, the only thing better than this is an apricot in Damascus) means "it doesn't get any better than this" and used when something is the very best it can be; like a delicious apricot from Damascus.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints includes in their Children's Songbook the song "Popcorn Popping on the Apricot Tree" describing an apricot tree in bloom.

References

See also

• List of apricot diseases
• Apricot kernel
• Pluot
• Ume
• Amygdalin
• Apricot Project

External links

• The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction at Project Gutenberg