An apricot (, ) is a fruit, or the tree that bears the fruit, of several species in the genus Prunus. Usually an apricot is from the species Prunus armeniaca, but the fruits of the other species in Prunus sect. Armeniaca are also called apricots.[
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Prunus armeniaca was domesticated in ancient times in Central Asia and China. Cultivation of the tree then spread across Eurasia and to North Africa and Japan. The fruit is consumed both fresh and dried. Apricots are used in dishes including , , and jam, and in savoury dishes, for example in stuffing. In Austria, they are the basis of Marillenknödel, sweet apricot dumplings.
Etymology
Apricot first appeared in English in the 16th century as abrecock from the Middle French aubercot or later abricot,
Description
The apricot is a small tree, up to tall, with a round canopy and a spread similar to its height. The flowers are white or pinkish, about wide, appearing before the leaves early in the spring. The fruit is a succulent orange-yellow drupe (a stonefruit) tinged with red.
File:Turkey.Pasa Baglari005.jpg|Tree
File:Healthy leaves of apricot.jpg|Leaves
File:Marillenblüten.jpg|Flowers
File:Apricot kernel (endocarp + seed).jpg|Apricot kernel (exocarp and seed)
Taxonomy
Apricots are species belonging to Prunus sect. Armeniaca. The taxonomic position of P. brigantina is disputed. It is grouped with plum species according to chloroplast DNA sequences,
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Prunus armeniaca – common apricot, widely cultivated for its edible fruit and apricot kernel
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Prunus brigantina – Briançon apricot, native to Europe, cultivated for its edible fruit and oil-producing apricot kernel
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Prunus cathayana – native to Hebei
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Prunus × dasycarpa – purple apricot, cultivated in Central Asia and adjacent areas for its edible fruit
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Prunus hongpingensis – Hongping apricot, native to Shennongjia, cultivated for its edible fruit
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Prunus hypotrichodes – native to Chongqing
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Prunus limeixing – cultivated in northern China for its edible fruit
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Prunus mandshurica – Manchurian apricot, native to Northeast Asia, cultivated for its apricot kernel, the fruits of some cultivars edible
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Prunus mume – flowering apricot, native to southern China, widely cultivated for its beautiful blossom and edible fruit
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Prunus sibirica – Siberian apricot, native to Siberia, Mongolia, northern China, and Korea, cultivated for its apricot kernel
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Prunus zhengheensis – Zhenghe apricot, native to Fujian
Cultivation
Origin and domestication
The most commonly cultivated apricot Prunus armeniaca was known in Armenia during ancient times, and has been cultivated there for so long that it was previously thought to have originated there, hence the epithet of its scientific name.
Cultivation practices
Apricots have a chilling requirement of 300 to 900 . A dry climate is good for fruit maturation. The tree is slightly more cold-hardy than the peach, tolerating winter temperatures as cold as or lower if healthy, with large differences between cultivars.
Apricot cultivars are usually grafting onto plum or peach rootstocks. The cultivar provides the fruit characteristics, such as flavor and size, but the rootstock provides the growth characteristics of the plant. Some of the more popular US apricot cultivars are 'Blenheim', 'Wenatchee Moorpark', 'Tilton', and 'Perfection'. Some apricot cultivars are self-compatible, so do not require pollinizer trees; others are not: 'Moongold' and 'Sungold', for example, must be planted in pairs so they can pollinate each other.
Plant breeders have created what is known as a "black apricot" or "purple apricot", ( Prunus dasycarpa), a hybrid of an apricot and the cherry plum ( Prunus cerasifera). Other apricot–plum hybrids are variously called Pluot.
File:Packard apricots.jpg|David Packard's apricot orchard in Los Altos Hills, preserved by the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, is one of the few remaining in Santa Clara County, where apricots were a major crop before the urban sprawl of Silicon Valley.
File:Preparing apricots. Alchi Monastery, Ladakh.jpg|Preparing apricots at Alchi Monastery, Ladakh, India
File:Dried apricot fruits in the field (Fergana, Uzbekistan).jpg|Drying apricots (Fergana, Uzbekistan)
Pests and diseases
Diseases of apricots vary with climate. In California's hot Central Valley, pit burn, a condition of soft and brown fruit around the pit, is common.[
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+ Apricot production
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| 750,000 |
| 500,545 |
| 318,475 |
| 207,190 |
| 200,566 |
| 3,728,155 |
| |
Production
In 2023, world production of apricots was 3.7 million , led by Turkey with 20% of the total (table). Other major producers (in descending order) were Uzbekistan, Iran, Italy, and Algeria.
Malatya is the center of Turkey's apricot industry.
Toxicity
Apricot kernels (seeds) contain amygdalin, a poisonous compound. On average, bitter apricot kernels contain about 5% amygdalin and sweet kernels about 0.9% amygdalin. These values correspond to 0.3% and 0.05% of cyanide. Since a typical apricot kernel weighs 600 mg, bitter and sweet varieties contain, respectively, 1.8 and 0.3 mg of cyanide.
Uses
Fruit
Fresh apricots can be cooked in dishes such as and , or made into jam.
File:Lemon Apricot Flower Tart on tray.jpg|A lemon apricot flower tart
File:Apricot jam.jpg|Apricot jam
File:Syrian apricot paste 01.jpg|Syrian apricot paste
File:FW Marillenknödl1.jpg| Marillenknödel, Austrian apricot dumpling
File:深大寺のあんず飴 Apricot candy of Jindai-ji Temple (4061067396).jpg|Candied apricots ( anzu) on monaka wafers at Jindai-ji Temple in Tokyo, Japan
File:Palinka.jpg|Barack apricot brandy
Kernel
Due to their natural amygdalin content, culinary uses for the kernel are limited because of the risk of cyanide poisoning.
Nutrition
A raw apricot is 86% water, 11% , 1% protein, and less than 1% fat (table). In a reference amount of , a raw apricot supplies 48 Calories and is a moderate source of vitamin A and vitamin C (11% each of the Daily Value, DV), with no other in significant content (less than 10% DV, table).
Phytochemicals
Apricots contain , such as , including catechins and chlorogenic acid.
Dried apricots
Dried apricots are a type of traditional dried fruit. Dried apricots are 31% water, 63% carbohydrates, 4% protein, and contain negligible fat (table). When the water content of apricots is decreased by drying, the mass fraction of micronutrients is increased, such as for vitamin A, vitamin E, and potassium, each having higher contents than in raw fruit (DVs above 20%, table).
In culture
The apricot is the national fruit of Armenia, mostly growing in the Ararat plain.
The Chinese associate the apricot with education and medicine. For instance, the classical word (literally: "apricot altar") (xìng tán 杏坛) which means "educational circle", is still widely used in written language. Zhuang Zhou, a Chinese philosopher in the fourth century BC, told a story that Confucius taught his students in a forum surrounded by the wood of apricot trees.
The short and unreliable apricot season in Egypt has given rise to the common Egyptian Arabic and Palestinian Arabic expression filmishmish ("in apricot season") or bukra filmishmish ("tomorrow in apricot season"), uttered as a riposte to an unlikely prediction, or as a rash promise to fulfill a request.
In Middle Eastern and North African cuisines, apricots are used to make Qamar al-Din ( "Moon of the faith"), a thick apricot drink that is a popular fixture at Iftar during Ramadan. Qamar al-Din is believed to originate in Damascus, Syria, where the variety of apricots most suitable for the drink was first grown.
In the U.S. Marines it is considered exceptionally bad luck to eat or possess apricots, especially near tanks.This superstition has been documented since at least the Vietnam War and is often cited as originating in World War II. Even calling them by their name is considered unlucky,
American ate dried apricot on the Apollo 15 and Apollo 17 missions to the moon.
Gallery
File:Dried date, peach, apricot, and stones. From Lahun, Fayum, Egypt. Late Middle Kingdom. The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London.jpg|Dried date, peach, apricot, and stones. From Lahun, Fayum, Egypt. Late Middle Kingdom. Petrie Museum, London
File:Dried apricot 01 Pengo.jpg|Dried apricot, with dark color due to absence of sulfur dioxide treatment
File:Сибирский абрикос.jpg|Prunus sibirica (Siberian apricot; hardy to but with less palatable fruit)
File:Apricots Drying In Cappadocia.JPG|Apricots drying on the ground in Cappadocia
File:Packaging apricot fruits in Surkhandarya (Uzbekistan).jpg|Packaging apricot fruits in Uzbekistan
File:Dried process of apricot fruits.jpg|Drying apricots, Uzbekistan
File:Marelica Kečkemetska ruža - zreli plodovi na grani.jpg|'Kecskemét Rose' - a pale and juicy apricot cultivar
See also
External links
