Plant family: Rosaceae
Plant origin: China.
Fruit description: The apricot fruit is a drupe similar to a small peach, about 5 cm diameter , pale yellow with a pink blush on the side exposed to the sun. Skin is smooth, thin and edible. The single seed is enclosed in a hard stony shell, often called a "stone".
Flowers: The flowers are 2–4.5 cm diameter, with five white to pinkish petals; they are produced singly or in pairs in early spring before the leaves.
Growing conditions: The apricot is a small, deciduous tree, 5m tall, with a trunk up to 40 cm diameter and a dense, spreading canopy. The leaves are ovate, about 5–9 cm long and 4–8 cm wide, with a rounded base, a pointed tip and a finely serrated margin.
The Forbidden Fruits Nursery variety will crop in a subtropical climate (unlike other varieties which require some cold weather to set fruit) The tree is large, vigorous and heavy cropping.
Apricots 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 100 g 10-10-10 fertilizer should be applied in the second year. Granular fertilizer should be scattered beneath the branches of the tree. An additional 100 g should be applied for every year of age of the tree in early spring, before growth starts.
Uses: Sweet aromatic delicious dessert fruit, also excellent stewed, dried, or made into jam or chutney.
Medicinal uses: Apricots are rich in the nutrient carotenoids. As apricots are high in fibre, they are useful as a dried fruit to relieve constipation. In traditional Chinese medicine, apricots are used to regenerate body fluids and to detoxify the body. Apricots or their seeds may be useful in the treatment of certain cancers.
Pollination requirements: Apricots are self-compatible and do not require a pollinator.
Harvest time Early Summer
Plant relatives
Special features: Apricot seeds contain traces of a cyanide related chemical and should not be eaten.
Grown by method: Grafted Pot size:
Plant growing Height and Width for pots or in the ground planting: Grows to 2.5 metres high by 1.5 metres wide if Planted in a Pot. Grows 4 metres high by 4 metres wide if Planted in the Ground.
Shipping plant pot or planter bag size:
