This orange flesh fruit is almost as luscious as the peach, some people even prefer it's slightly tangy flavour and juicy sweetness to that of it's near relative. Cultivation of this fruit in China dates back nearly 3000 years and was later introduced to main land Europe in 70-60 BC by the Romans. The majority of apricots are now commercially grown in California.
The three root stocks used for apricots are torinel, myrobolan and seedling peach.
When buying an apricot tree from a nursery choose one that is two to three years odd, a good nursery should be able to provide a choice of shape you want to grow, making them more adaptable to your gardens situation.
Site and soil
Apricots are a fruit which thrive in warm summers and cool winters, the winter period enables the plant to rest and become completely dormant. They prefer a site which allows good airflow through the branches, but also one that is not exposed from cool easterly winds. As they flower earlier than the peach the blossom can be destroyed by spring frosts, so frost pockets should be avoided.
This plant prefers a slightly alkaline well drained soil, but also requires one which is rich in organic material, heavy clay soils should certainly be avoided.
Planting
The best time to plant your apricots is early to mid autumn, because growth starts so early in the spring.
If you are growing a fan trained tree plant the tree at least 15cms away from the wall and trees should be spaced 3 metres apart. Bush trees will need at least 1.8 metres spacing in every direction.
Plant the trees so that the uppermost roots are 8cms below the soil surface and make sure the hole is wide enough to accommodate the full extent of the roots. If the roots become dry in transit soak them in a bucket of water for two hours prior to planting.
Fill the hole gradually firming the soil as you go, make a small mound around the tree stem. The allows for sinkage, which in turn will prevent water collecting around the trunk.
Bush trees will need the support of a stake for the first few years, the stake should be put in place prior to planting to avoid root damage.
Training
There are two main methods of training Apricot trees...
Fan shaped tree
This is an illustration of one branch of a wall mounted fan trained apricot..
The initial training of a fan shaped apricot tree would be much the same as that of a Peach, though you would find an Apricot will not produce such luxuriant growth. Training them will be less time consuming and less complicated.
The main aim of pruning is to encourage the tree to produce new shoots, evenly spaced out, regularly every year. Too hard pruning will result in too much vegetative growth and too little or no pruning can cause a sequence of heavy crops, which in term will exhaust the tree and give poor quality crops.
Although the apricot will fruit on one year old shoots, it carries more and better quality fruit on growth that is two or three years old.
Because of the risk of diseases like silver leaf, prune during late spring and summer. Unavoidably, some later pruning may be necessary, this should be done no later than late autumn.
Remove any new shoots which grow directly into the wall, also those directly away from it, these can be rubbed out when they become obvious. Any week shoots should also be removed, also any that have died back from the tip; cut these back to living growth.
During the growing period remove any sucker shoots which develope at the base of the tree.
Bush tree
When pruning a bush tree you should be aiming to build up a cup shaped frame work of primary branches, on which the fruiting side shoots will be carried. The subsequent pruning should be light, but aimed at helping the tree produce new shoots each year, spaced evenly over the tree.
As with a fan training, remove suckers at the base of the tree, remove dead wood and remove any branches that show signs of disease. Branches that cross each other should also be removed, this prevent rubbing, which can cause open wounds leading to infection.
As the tree matures branches may start to wilt and look less healthy, these should be removed and cut off at the trunk.
Second seasons growth...
Flowering and pollination
The apricot should flower in early spring, or even earlier, so there is a risk from frost damage. If frosts are likely protect the blossom with netting or polythene sheeting, making sure the sheeting does not touch the flowers. If there is a lack of pollinating insects you may need to do this job yourself with a small brush.
Watering
If dry weather follows after planting, supply the young tree with plenty of moisture. Also watering is recommended around the fruiting period if the soil becomes dry.
Feeding
Apricots prefer a fertilizer which has a high nitrogen content and a dressing of well rotted manure in the autumn would be beneficial.
Harvesting
The early varieties become ripe in mid summer, the later varieties continue into early autumn. Do not pick the fruit immediately they have reached their full colour and have stopped swelling. Although the flesh may be soft, the fruit will lack that distinctive apricot flavour, it is better to wait a few days for the fruit to reach maturity. Be careful when picking, as the stalk is easily torn away from the fruit.
