The Advantages of Fruiting Apricot Trees
Perfectly ripened apricots plucked fresh from apricot trees are among the most delicious fruits. Unfortunately, apricots do not ripen well after picking, and ripe apricots do not ship well, and thus supermarket purchases of fresh apricots are invariably disappointing. The simplest way to obtain perfectly ripened apricots is to grow your own. In addition to enjoying fresh fruit, home-grown apricots can be turned into delicious jam and enjoyed in dozens of recipes.
To grow your apricots, you need to plant some fruiting apricot trees. These trees can be used for landscaping, shade, and fruit; full-size trees mature to around 20 feet tall and wide, semi-dwarfs at 15 feet, and dwarfs at 6 feet. The trees have lovely dark green foliage and produce large amounts of pale violet flowers very early in the spring.
Fruiting apricots are suitable for the bees, providing nectar before most other plants flower
Fruiting apricots are native to western China and have been grown in the Middle East for thousands of years. Plant breeders have produced several cultivars that thrive in USDA Hardiness Zones 4 to 9. They are self-fertilizing, so one tree is sufficient to produce fruit. They start producing fruit as young as two years of age. A mature dwarf tree can produce 50 pounds of delicious fruit yearly, and a mature full-size tree can produce 200 pounds yearly.
Fruiting apricots need sunlight and not much else to thrive
They are drought-tolerant and rarely need to be watered. You can transplant a young apricot tree in early spring or late fall while it is dormant. You can even grow the dwarf trees in pots on your patio or balcony if you are short on space. In no time, you will be enjoying delicious, sun-ripened apricots plucked from your trees.
