Posts Tagged: apricots
Disappointing Apricot Crop? Veggies in the Orchard?
Advice From the Help Desk
of the UC Master Gardener Program
Help Desk Response: Thank you for contacting the UC Master Gardeners about your apricot trees and their problems fruiting this year when your other fruit trees are fruiting well. You also asked for advice on growing vegetables in your home orchard.
There are many reasons why fruit trees will fail to produce with only a light crop. The main problems in our area tend to be weather related, either too warm in the winter or rains or frost at the incorrect time. Other problems may be related to pruning, either timing and/or amount of pruning. Based on the research that we have done on temperatures last winter and the moderate pruning that your trees received, I don't believe that those would have been problems for your trees. Although there were some cool temperatures in February that may have impacted pollination. The more likely cause of your problem was the March rains that we experienced. Apricots bloom in February and early March and spring rains leave them at particular risk for pollination and fruit set problems.
There is one other factor that may have contributed to the problems with your apricot production. You had mentioned that your trees received little water last summer due to the drought. Apricot trees initiate fruiting in early August of the prior year. This is a bit later than for other fruit trees. It is possible that stress due to the lack of water last summer may have impacted your apricots selectively.
Below are some links to more information that you might find useful.
http://homeorchard.ucanr.edu/Fruits_&_Nuts/Apricot_Prunus_armeniaca_L/
The above link provides a useful calendar for apricot management. It also mentions the spring rain problems encountered by apricots:
http://ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/GARDEN/FRUIT/apricots.html.
This link provides cultural tips as well as guidance on pest control.
Veggies and Fruit Trees: You had also asked about planting vegetables in your orchard. You do need to be careful planting vegetables with fruit trees. While not recommended for the several reasons below, with very careful planning, you might have success. In this case, success (e.g., quantity, quality, type, etc.) would be in the eye of the garden owner, you. For example, one problem is shade. Most summer vegetables need 6-8 hours full sun. If you are going to plant, you would need to make sure that the vegetables are on the south side of the fruit trees to avoid shade on the vegetable plants. Another problem is water. Trees do best with relatively infrequent and deep watering. Vegetables typically need more frequent watering. If you are setting up new irrigation, you should separate the vegetable irrigation system from the orchard system. Here is some information on irrigation: http://ccmg.ucanr.edu/files/221116.pdf.
I thought you might also be interested in some general information on setting up and managing a vegetable garden: http://anrcatalog.ucanr.edu/pdf/8059.pdf.
Good luck with your trees and your vegetables. Please let us know if you have further questions.
Help Desk of the UC Master Gardeners of Contra Costa County (ECS)
Note: The UC Master Gardeners Program of Contra Costa's Help Desk is available year-round to answer your gardening questions. Except for a few holidays, we're open every week, Monday through Thursday for walk-ins from 9:00 am to Noon at 75 Santa Barbara Road, 2d Floor, Pleasant Hill, CA 94523. We can also be reached via telephone: (925) 646-6586, email: ccmg@ucanr.edu, or on the web at http://ccmg.ucanr.edu/Ask_Us/ MGCC Blogs can be found at http://ccmg.ucanr.edu/HortCoCo/ You can also subscribe to the Blog (//ucanr.edu/blogs/CCMGBlog/).
California summer fruit smaller and tastier this year
"That smaller peach this year very likely is sweeter than the moderate-sized peach of last year," said Kevin Day, UC ANR Cooperative Extension advisor and director in Tulare and Kings counties.
Most of the change in fruit size can be attributed to the drought. When irrigation is limited, water content of the fruit diminishes and sugars become a greater proportion of the fruit mass. However, Day says drought isn't the only reason for 2015's smaller fruit size. California also had unusually warm temperatures in January and February 2015, causing fruit to ripen faster.
"A variety that might ripen after 120 days of being on a tree in a year like this ripens in only 110," Day said. "And, so it's consequently shortchanged out of 10 days of growing."
Tangy Apricot Walnut Chicken
Tangy Apricot Walnut Chicken Spicy brown mustard and apricot preserves make this...
Arrival of apricot season
Apricots have been grown in the fertile crescent of Persia for thousands of years. The colonists brought the apricot to North America, but most of the stock of today’s production comes from seedlings carried by the Franciscan friars who built the missions and brought much of Spain’s agriculture to California.
In recent years I have heard many disappointed comments at that first bite of a fresh apricot, and I was curious to check with University of California pomologists and USDA Agricultural Research Station specialists to see what progress was being made in bringing more flavorful apricots to consumers. Five different pomologists indicated that market produce buyers tend to primarily value color, size and firmness over the flavor of apricots. The earlier the produce buyers can get them into the grocery store, the more highly they are valued, so they are often harvested before the fruit’s flavor has a chance to develop. The experts I checked with all said they NEVER bought apricots anywhere except a farmer’s market or roadside stand.
The varieties most commonly grown in California are “Patterson”, “Tilton” and “Apache,” and they are selected by growers because of their early harvest dates, large size, attractive color, longer shelf life, and their ability to be used for either fresh or canning applications. Tom Gradziel, a UC Davis professor of genetics and breeding of the Prunus species said, “In the Central Valley, most apricots are still going for processing. Therefore a dual market (processing or fresh) variety such as Patterson is often preferred. It has excellent color, size, and firmness, but tastes like cardboard."
The varieties that the pomologists included in their list of favorites are “Royal Blenheim,” “Robada,” “Katy,” “Primarosa” and “Derby.” Craig Ledbetter, a geneticist working with apricot breeding at the Parlier USDA Agricultural Research Service Center said, “We hear so much about flavor, but I don’t think flavor will be coming to the grocery stores unless in the form of overripe fruit. Here we breed for a sugar/acid balance. We have many breeding selections that taste absolutely fabulous, but are a bit smaller than growers desire. Honestly, they don’t even want to look at ‘small’ fruit. It is a pity!”
Selecting apricots. Apricots do not develop more flavor after they are picked, so select fruit that are completely yellow, deepening toward orange. The subtle, sweet scent of apricot is a good indicator that the inside will taste just as good.
Storing apricots. Keep them on the counter if you will eat them within 2 to 3 days, otherwise store ripe apricots in the refrigerator in a perforated plastic bag.
How to enjoy apricots. Apricots have a pit in the center that is easily separated from the flesh. After washing the fruit, cut in half along the seam and remove the pit. Enjoy the whole fruit, or prepare in tarts, breads, jams, glazes for meats, salsa, or dry them in a dehydrator.
Apricot Tart
Pastry.
1 ¼ c. all-purpose flour
½ tsp. salt
1 Tbls. granulated sugar
½ tsp. almond flavoring (optional)
½ c. unsalted butter, chilled
2 Tbls. Ice water
Apricot filling.
½ c. granulated sugar (or less if the apricots are sweet)
1 Tbls. cornstarch
Dash of salt
1 ½ lbs. (or 10 medium-large) fresh, ripe apricots, pitted and sliced into 1/4” slices
Place sugar, cornstarch and salt into a bowl and stir well, add sliced apricots and toss gently.
Remove pastry from the refrigerator, place apricot filling in the center of the pastry, leaving a 2” border around the edge. Gently fold the pastry border up on top of the apricots, folding the pastry up around the outside edges of the fruit and pinching folds to form a round tart. Seal any cracks in the sides and bottom of the pastry so the juice doesn’t leak out on the baking sheet. Leave the fruit showing in the center of the pastry. Sprinkle with a handful of sliced almonds if desired.
Bake at 375 degrees F for 40-45 minutes, or until golden brown.
Excellent served with vanilla ice cream.
University of California Resources:
- Recommendations for Maintaining Postharvest Quality of Apricots
- Storing Fresh Fruits and Vegetables for Better Taste
- Apricot Information: Fruit & Nut Research and Information Center
Arrival of Apricot Season
Apricots have been grown in the fertile crescent of Persia for thousands of years. The colonists brought the apricot to North America, but most of the stock of today’s production comes from seedlings carried by the Franciscan friars who built the missions and brought much of Spain’s agriculture to California.
In recent years I have heard many disappointed comments at that first bite of a fresh apricot, and I was curious to check with University of California Pomologists and USDA Agricultural Research Station specialists to see what progress was being made in bringing more flavorful apricots to consumers. Five different pomologists indicated that market produce buyers tend to primarily value color, size and firmness over the flavor of apricots. The earlier the produce buyers can get them into the grocery store, the more highly they are valued, so they are often harvested before the fruit’s flavor has a chance to develop. The experts I checked with all said they NEVER bought apricots anywhere except a farmer’s market or roadside stand.
The varieties most commonly grown in California are “Patterson”, “Tilton”, and “Apache”, and they are selected by growers because of their early harvest dates, large size, attractive color, longer shelf life, and their ability to be used for either fresh or canning applications. Tom Gradziel, a UC Davis professor of genetics and breeding of the Prunus species said, “In the Central Valley most apricots are still going for processing. Therefore a dual market (processing or fresh) variety such as Patterson is often preferred. It has excellent color, size, and firmness, but tastes like cardboard. “
The varieties that the pomologists included in their list of favorites included “Royal Blenheim”, “Robada”, “Katy”, “Primarosa”, and “Derby.” Craig Ledbetter, a geneticist working with apricot breeding at the Parlier USDA ARS Center said, “We hear so much about flavor, but I don’t think flavor will be coming to the grocery stores unless in the form of overripe fruit. Here we breed for a sugar/acid balance. We have many breeding selections that taste absolutely fabulous, but are a bit smaller than growers desire. Honestly, they don’t even want to look at ‘small’ fruit. It is a pity!”
Selecting Apricots. Apricots do not develop more flavor after they are picked, so select fruit that are completely yellow, deepening toward orange. The subtle, sweet scent of apricot is a good indicator that the inside will taste just as good.
Storing Apricots. Keep them on the counter if you will eat them within 2-3 days, otherwise store ripe apricots in the refrigerator in a perforated plastic bag.
How to Enjoy Apricots. Apricots have a pit in the center that is easily separated from the flesh. After washing the fruit, cut in half along the seam and remove the pit. Enjoy the whole fruit, or prepare in tarts, breads, jams, glazes for meats, salsa, or dry them in a dehydrator.
Apricot Tart
Pastry.
1 ¼ c. all-purpose flour
½ tsp. salt
1 Tbls. granulated sugar
½ tsp. almond flavoring (optional)
½ c. unsalted butter, chilled
2 Tbls. Ice water
Using pastry blender, stir together flour, salt and sugar, cut in butter until dough is in coarse crumbs. Cut in water until pastry holds together when pinched, do not over mix. Lay out a sheet of plastic wrap, form pastry into a ball and wrap with the plastic wrap. Refrigerate 60 minutes. Remove plastic wrap and place on lightly floured surface, roll out to a 12” – 14” circle. Place on a baking tray lined with parchment paper, and return to the refrigerator while preparing the apricot filling.
Apricot Filling.
½ c. granulated sugar (or less if the apricots are sweet)
1 Tbls. cornstarch
Dash of salt|
1 ½ lbs. (or 10 medium-large) fresh, ripe apricots, pitted and sliced into 1/4” slices
Place sugar, cornstarch and salt into a bowl and stir well, add sliced apricots and toss gently.
Remove pastry from the refrigerator, place apricot filling in the center of the pastry, leaving a 2” border around the edge. Gently fold the pastry border up on top of the apricots, folding the pastry up around the outside edges of the fruit and pinching folds to form a round tart. Seal any cracks in the sides and bottom of the pastry so the juice doesn’t leak out on the baking sheet. Leave the fruit showing in the center of the pastry. Sprinkle with a handful of sliced almonds if desired.
Bake at 375 F for 40-45 minutes, or until golden brown.
Excellent served with vanilla ice cream.
University of California Resources:
Recommendations for Maintaining Postharvest Quality of Apricots
Storing Fresh Fruits and Vegetables for Better Taste
Apricot Information: Fruit & Nut Research and Information Center