Almond
Prunus dulcis

Family: Rosaceae

What it is like

A deciduous tree. It grows 7.5-12 m high. It can spread 7.5-9 m wide. It grows straight then spreads later. The bark is dark grey and cracks. The bark has yellow rings of pores around the trunk. The leaves are alternate and long pointed. They are 12 cm long by 4 cm wide. They hang down. The leaves have fine soft teeth around the edge. The leaves are folded along the midrib. It loses its leaves during the year. The flowers appear before the leaves. The flowers occur either singly or in pairs. They are pink and 5 cm across. The fruit are green and contain edible nuts. The fruit are 6 cm long. The flesh is dry and leathery. There is one stone and the white seed inside is edible.

There are about 200 Prunus species. Probably Prunus amygdalus but it is an unresolved name in The Plant List.

Where it is found

It suits a Mediterranean climate. It is native to N. Africa, C and S.W. Asia. They are frost hardy. They need a warm summer to fully ripen. It suits hardiness zones 7-10. Arboretum Tasmania.

Countries/locations it is found in

Afghanistan, Africa, Andorra, Arabia, Armenia, Asia, Australia, Azerbaijan, Balkans, Brazil, Britain, Caucasus, Central America, Central Asia, Chile, China, Colombia, Cyprus, East Africa, Europe, France, Georgia, Greece, Himalayas, Iceland, India, Iran, Iraq, Italy, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Lebanon, Macedonia, Malawi, Mediterranean, Mexico, Middle East, Morocco, Myanmar, Nepal, North Africa, North America, Pakistan, Portugal, SE Asia, Somalia, South Africa, South America, Spain, Syria, Tajikistan, Tasmania, Turkey, Türkiye, Turkmenistan, USA, Uzbekistan, Venezuela

How it is used for food

The oil from the kernel can be bitter and contains HCN which needs to be removed by heating. The oil is used as food flavouring. The kernels of sweet kinds is eaten. They can be eaten fresh of dried, crushed, flaked, ground and used as ingredients. The nuts can be blended with water to form almond milk, made into almond butter or pressed for their edible oil. The oil is used in salads.

Edible parts

Seeds, nuts, fruit, gum, seeds - oil

How it is grown

Almond trees cannot pollinate themselves. For good fruit set pollinating cultivars are planted along with others.

Trees can bear for 50 years. A tree can produce 10-15 kgs per year.

Its other names

Local names

Aamondo, Ajik, Almendro, Amandier, Amendoa-doce, Amendoa-europeia, Amendoeira, Amiddala, Badam, Badem, Bahiv, Beivf, Bian tou, Bodom, Cagala, Chaqalla bawi, Hung yun, Kara momo, Mandelbaum, Mandoria, Payam, Sweet almond, Xing ren

Synonyms

Amygdalus communis L.; Amygdalus dulcis Mill.; Prunus amygdalus (L.) Batsch; Prunus communis (L.) Arcang., nom. illeg.; Prunus dulcis var. amara (DC.) Buchheim;