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Apricot

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Food and agriculture

                   iApricot
   Apricot fruit
   Apricot fruit
           Scientific classification

   Kingdom:  Plantae
   Division: Magnoliophyta
   Class:    Magnoliopsida
   Order:    Rosales
   Family:   Rosaceae
   Genus:    Prunus
   Subgenus: Prunus
   Species:  P. armeniaca

                                Binomial name

   Prunus armeniaca
   L.

   The apricot (Prunus armeniaca, syn. Armeniaca vulgaris, Chinese: 杏子) is
   a fruit-bearing tree native to China. It is classified with the plum in
   the subgenus Prunus of the Prunus genus.

   It is a small- to medium-sized tree with a dense, spreading canopy 8–12
   m tall; its leaves are shaped somewhat like a heart, with pointed tips,
   and about 8 cm long and 3–4 cm wide. Its flowers are white to pinkish
   in colour. The fruit appears similar to a peach or nectarine, with a
   colour ranging from yellow to orange and sometimes a red cast; its
   surface is smooth and nearly hairless. Apricots are stone fruit (
   drupes), so called because the lone seed is often called a "stone".

   The name derives from "apricock" and "abrecox", through the French
   abricot, from the Spanish albaricoque, which was an adaptation of the
   Arabic al-burquk, itself a rendering of the late Greek πρεκοκκια or
   πραικοκιον, adapted from the Latin praecox or praecoquus, early,
   possibly referring to the fruit maturing much earlier in the summer
   than plums. However, in Argentina and Chile the word for "apricot" is
   "damasco" which probably indicates that to the Argentines the fruit was
   associated with Damascus.

Cultivation

   The apricot originated in northeastern China near the Russian border,
   not in Armenia as the scientific name suggests. It did arrive in
   Armenia after moving through central Asia, which took about 3,000
   years. The Romans brought it into Europe through Anatolia about 70 BC.
   While English settlers brought the apricot to the English colonies in
   the New World, most of modern American production of apricots comes
   from the seedlings carried to the west coast by Spanish missionaries.
   Turkey provides 85 percent of the world's dried apricot and apricot
   kernels today (concentrated around the city of Malatya). Most U.S.
   production is in California with some in Oregon and Utah.

   The Apricot is slightly more cold-hardy than the peach, tolerating
   winter temperatures as cold as −30 °C or lower if healthy. The limiting
   factor in apricot culture is spring frosts: They tend to flower very
   early, before the vernal equinox even in northern locations like the
   Great Lakes region, meaning spring frost often kills the flowers. The
   trees do need some winter cold (even if minimal) to bear and grow
   properly and do well in Mediterranean climate locations since spring
   frosts are less severe here but there is some cool winter weather to
   allow a proper dormancy. The dry climate of these areas is best for
   good fruit production. Hybridisation with the closely related Prunus
   sibirica (Siberian Apricot; hardy to −50°C but with less palatable
   fruit) offers options for breeding more cold-tolerant plants .

   Apricot cultivars are most often grafted on plum or peach rootstocks. A
   cutting of an existing apricot plant provides the fruit characteristics
   such as flavor, size, etc., but the rootstock provides the growth
   characteristics of the plant.

   Many apricots are also cultivated in Australia, particularly South
   Australia where they are commonly grown in the region known as the
   Riverland and in a small town called Mypolonga in the Lower Murray
   region of the state. In states other than South Australia apricots are
   still grown, particularly in Tasmania and western Victoria and
   southwest New South Wales, but they are less common than in South
   Australia.

   Apricots are also cultivated in Egypt and are among the common fruits
   well known there. The seasons in which apricot is present in the market
   in Egypt is very short. There is even an Egyptian proverb that says
   "Fel meshmesh" (English "in the apricot"} which is used to refer to
   something that will not happen because the apricot disappears from the
   market in Egypt so shortly after it has appeared. Egyptians usually dry
   apricot and sweeten it then use it to make a drink called "amar el
   deen".

Medicinal and non-food uses

   Fresh or dried, apricots are an excellent health and beauty food. Three
   small fresh apricots contain more than 50% of the recommended daily
   intake (RDA) of beta-carotene, a potent antioxidant. Beta-carotene
   prevents the build-up of plaque deposits in the arteries, protects the
   eyes from sun damage and deactivates free radicals that, if left
   unchecked, accelerate the ageing process and increase the risk of
   cancer. In addition, the body converts beta-carotene into vitamin A,
   which is vital for good vision and for keeping the eyes lubricated.
   Those at risk of dry eyes, such as contact-lens wearers, should include
   plenty of apricots in their diet. Apricots contain significant levels
   of iron, essential for hemoglobin, the oxygen-carrying pigment in red
   blood cells. Iron deficiency leads to anaemia, pale skin, and thinning,
   undernourished hair.

   Cyanogenic glycosides (found in most stone fruit seeds, bark, and
   leaves) are found in high concentration in apricot seeds. Laetrile, a
   purported alternative treatment for cancer, is extracted from apricot
   seeds. As early as the year 502, apricot seeds were used to treat
   tumors, and in the 17th century apricot oil was used in England against
   tumors and ulcers. Seeds of the apricot grown in central Asia and
   around the Mediterranean are so sweet that they may be substituted for
   almonds. Oil pressed from these cultivars has been used as cooking oil.
   Powderized seeds can also be added to pastry dough to give a distinct
   flavor.

   In Europe, apricots were long considered an aphrodisiac, and were used
   in this context in William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, and
   as an inducer of childbirth labor, as depicted in John Webster's The
   Duchess of Malfi. Dreaming of apricots, in English folklore, is said to
   be good luck, though the Chinese believe the fruit is a symbol of
   cowardice.

   The IUD ( intrauterine device) form of birth control, based on the
   premise that a foreign obejct within the uterus will prevent the
   implantation of an embryo, is linked to an old practice of camel
   herders and drivers who would place an apricot pit within the uterus of
   their female camels to prevent pregenancy and keep them working at
   carrying cargo rather than the work of mothering.

Apricot in culture

   The Chinese associate the apricot with education and medicine. Chuang
   Tzu, a Chinese philosopher in 4th century BCE, had told a story that
   Confucius taught his students in a forum among the wood of apricot.

   In the 2nd century, Tung Fung, a medical doctor, lived in Lushan. He
   asked his cured patients to plant apricots in his backyard instead of
   paying consultation and medical fees. Those cured of serious illness
   planted five, and the rest planted one. After some years, a hundred
   thousand apricot trees were planted and the wood become the symbol for
   doctors and medicine.

   In The Wizard of Oz, the Cowardly Lion sings, "What puts the ape in the
   apricot? Courage!"

   Among tank-driving soldiers, apricots are taboo, by superstition.
   Tankers will not eat apricots, allow apricots onto their vehicles, and
   often will not even say the word "apricot".

   Retrieved from " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apricot"
   This reference article is mainly selected from the English Wikipedia
   with only minor checks and changes (see www.wikipedia.org for details
   of authors and sources) and is available under the GNU Free
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