Flora of North America species comparison

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Prunus dulcis

Prunus havardii

almond, almond tree, amandier, sweet almond

Havard's almond, Havard's plum
Habit Trees, not suckering, 50–80 dm, not thorny. Shrubs, suckering unknown, much branched, 10–20 dm, thorny.
Twigs

with terminal end buds, glabrous.

with axillary end buds, puberulent.
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 1–3 mm, glabrous or puberulent, eglandular;

blade rhombic, obovate, or fan-shaped, 0.5–1.6(–2) × 0.2–0.8(–1.4) cm, base broadly obtuse or rounded to nearly truncate, margins serrate or dentate in distal 1/2, teeth blunt to sharp, some callus-tipped, rarely glandular, apex rounded to obtuse, surfaces puberulent.
Inflorescences

solitary flowers or 2-flowered fascicles.

solitary flowers.
Pedicels

1–5 mm, glabrous.

0 mm.
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.

unisexual, plants dioecious, blooming at leaf emergence;

hypanthium campanulate, 2.5–3 mm, glabrous externally;

sepals spreading to reflexed, triangular, 0.7–1 mm, margins entire, sparsely ciliate, surfaces glabrate;

petals white, obovate, 2 mm;

ovaries hairy.
Drupes

gray-green, ovoid-oblong, compressed, 25–40 mm, velutinous;

mesocarps leathery (splitting);

stones ellipsoid, strongly flattened, pitted.

reddish brown, ovoid, 8–11 mm, puberulent;

hypanthium tardily deciduous;

mesocarps leathery to dry (splitting);

stones ovoid, slightly flattened.
2n

= 16.

Prunus dulcis

Prunus havardii
Phenology Flowering Feb–Mar; fruiting Jul–Sep. Flowering Apr–Jun; fruiting Jun–Aug.
Habitat Roadsides, canyons, grasslands Draws, dry rocky slopes of canyons, limestone soil, igneous rock
Elevation 20–500 m (100–1600 ft) 700–1700 m (2300–5600 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
CA; ID; WA; w Asia; n Africa [Introduced in North America]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
TX; Mexico (Chihuahua)
[BONAP county map]
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.)

Prunus havardii is endemic to the Chihuahuan Desert of trans-Pecos Texas and across the Rio Grande in Mexico, with most collections from the Big Bend area.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 9, p. 372. FNA vol. 9, p. 371.
Parent taxa Rosaceae > subfam. Amygdaloideae > tribe Amygdaleae > Prunus Rosaceae > subfam. Amygdaloideae > tribe Amygdaleae > Prunus
Sibling taxa
P. americana, P. andersonii, P. angustifolia, P. armeniaca, P. avium, P. caroliniana, P. cerasifera, P. cerasus, P. domestica, P. emarginata, P. eremophila, P. fasciculata, P. fremontii, P. geniculata, P. glandulosa, P. gracilis, P. havardii, P. hortulana, P. ilicifolia, P. laurocerasus, P. lusitanica, P. mahaleb, P. maritima, P. mexicana, P. minutiflora, P. murrayana, P. myrtifolia, P. nigra, P. padus, P. pensylvanica, P. persica, P. pumila, P. rivularis, P. serotina, P. speciosa, P. spinosa, P. subcordata, P. subhirtella, P. texana, P. tomentosa, P. umbellata, P. virginiana, P. yedoensis
P. americana, P. andersonii, P. angustifolia, P. armeniaca, P. avium, P. caroliniana, P. cerasifera, P. cerasus, P. domestica, P. dulcis, P. emarginata, P. eremophila, P. fasciculata, P. fremontii, P. geniculata, P. glandulosa, P. gracilis, P. hortulana, P. ilicifolia, P. laurocerasus, P. lusitanica, P. mahaleb, P. maritima, P. mexicana, P. minutiflora, P. murrayana, P. myrtifolia, P. nigra, P. padus, P. pensylvanica, P. persica, P. pumila, P. rivularis, P. serotina, P. speciosa, P. spinosa, P. subcordata, P. subhirtella, P. texana, P. tomentosa, P. umbellata, P. virginiana, P. yedoensis
Synonyms Amygdalus dulcis, A. communis, P. amygdalus Amygdalus havardii
Name authority (Miller) D. A. Webb: Feddes Repert. 74: 24. (1967) (W. Wight) S. C. Mason: J. Agric. Res. 1: 153, 176. (1913)
Web links 
Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).



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