Prunus dulcis |
Prunus glandulosa |
|
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almond, almond tree, amandier, sweet almond |
dwarf flowering almond, flowering almond |
|
Habit | Trees, not suckering, 50–80 dm, not thorny. | Shrubs, suckering, 5–20 dm, not thorny. |
Twigs | with terminal end buds, glabrous. |
with terminal end buds, glabrous. |
Leaves | deciduous; petiole (8–)10–25 mm, usually winged distally, glabrous, usually glandular distally or on margins at bases of blades; blade oblong to lanceolate, 2.5–10 × 1–3 cm, base obtuse, margins crenulate-serrulate to crenate-serrate, teeth blunt, glandular, apex acuminate, surfaces glabrous. |
deciduous; petiole 1–6 mm, hairy on adaxial surface, eglandular; blade narrowly elliptic to oblong-lanceolate, 2.5–9 × 0.9–2.5 cm, base cuneate to obtuse, margins crenulate-serrulate, teeth blunt, glandular, apex acute to acuminate, abaxial surface glabrous or slightly hairy along midribs and veins, adaxial glabrous. |
Inflorescences | solitary flowers or 2-flowered fascicles. |
solitary flowers or 2-flowered fascicles. |
Pedicels | 1–5 mm, glabrous. |
6–15 mm, glabrous or sparsely puberulent. |
Flowers | blooming before leaf emergence; hypanthium cupulate, 4–7 mm, glabrous externally; sepals erect-spreading to spreading, oblong-ovate, 4–8 mm, margins entire, tomentose, surfaces glabrous; petals pink to nearly white, obovate, elliptic, or suborbiculate, 12–25 mm; ovaries hairy. |
blooming at leaf emergence; hypanthium campanulate, 2–3 mm, glabrous or sparsely puberulent externally; sepals spreading to reflexed, ovate, 2.5–5 mm, margins glandular-toothed, ± ciliate, surfaces glabrous or sparsely puberulent; petals 25+, white or pink, elliptic to narrowly elliptic, 8–11 mm; ovaries glabrous. |
Drupes | gray-green, ovoid-oblong, compressed, 25–40 mm, velutinous; mesocarps leathery (splitting); stones ellipsoid, strongly flattened, pitted. |
reddish, subglobose, 10–15 mm, glabrous; mesocarps fleshy; stones subglobose, not flattened. |
2n | = 16. |
|
Prunus dulcis |
Prunus glandulosa |
|
Phenology | Flowering Feb–Mar; fruiting Jul–Sep. | Flowering Mar–May. |
Habitat | Roadsides, canyons, grasslands | Roadsides, fencerows, abandoned plantings |
Elevation | 20–500 m (100–1600 ft) | 0–400 m (0–1300 ft) |
Distribution |
CA; ID; WA; w Asia; n Africa [Introduced in North America]
|
IA; MI; NC; ON; e Asia (China, Japan) [Introduced in North America] |
Discussion | The United States now dominates world almond production with over 40% of the annual crop, all of it grown in or near the Central Valley of California. The in-shell “nuts” sold in stores are the pits of drupes with the leathery mesocarp removed. Almond is among the earliest blossoming trees and one of the first signs of spring in areas where it is grown. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Double-flowered cultivars of Prunus glandulosa, which lack stamens and carpels, are commonly planted as foundation shrubs and in borders. Although the plants are attractive in bloom, some horticulturalists consider them of little ornamental value otherwise. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 9, p. 372. | FNA vol. 9, p. 377. |
Parent taxa | Rosaceae > subfam. Amygdaloideae > tribe Amygdaleae > Prunus | Rosaceae > subfam. Amygdaloideae > tribe Amygdaleae > Prunus |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | Amygdalus dulcis, A. communis, P. amygdalus | |
Name authority | (Miller) D. A. Webb: Feddes Repert. 74: 24. (1967) | Thunberg: in J. A. Murray, Syst. Veg. ed. 14, 463. (1784) |
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