Apricot varieties

I’m looking for a variety of Apricot that tends to be a large white with red blush with very rich flavor. I had one that I’ve collected from a seedling tree, but was a very shy producer. I didn’t save any scions from it when I moved.
Anyone growing similar variety of Apricot?

Hi Bass,

Two good sources of white apricots are The Arboreum Company and Bob Purvis Nursery.

Could it have been the Moniqui white apricot? That one is white with a blush. Spanish origin. But it seems to be the most reliably productive white cot.

http://www.arboreumco.com/store/products/moniqui

Or perhaps Lasgherdi Mashad of Iran? Ghostly white. Rich and juicy.

http://www.arboreumco.com/store/products/lasgerdi-mashhad

There are many other white cots out there: Sparks Mammoth; Canadian White Blenheim; Shalah; Sugar Pearls; etc etc…

Forum founder @scottfsmith knows a lot about white cots. He is trying to grow many of them. Perhaps he’ll chime in.

It’s hard to know what you had, Bass, and whether it is a known variety or something unique.

Thanks Matt.
I know it wasn’t a known variety, since it was a seedling. I wanted something similar to it. Thanks for these info. The moniqui looks very similar. I requested a scion wood list from the other source you mentioned. Will say what they have.

Shalah (Erevani) fits the description. It’s an Armenian variety very popular in the former USSR. However you will need to experiment with pollenizers (best if grafted as branches onto the Shalah tree) to get a good crop.

Maybe the new owner of your old place would let you snip some scions of the seedling if you ask their permission and explain it is a one-of-a-kind fruit tree. Sad to imagine it lost to posterity if it was a new white apricot worth eating (such a rare treasure).

But you know all this , so I’m guessing there’s some reason you can’t (ie. the tree has already been cut down)?

Bob Purvis is in Idaho and he is an apricot guru who collaborates with NAFEX and Rutgers Univ. He sells scions of several white cots, including: Suphany, Afghanistan, and Zard. I’m sure he will reply to you soon, and send you more details.

Zard is white to pale yellow but considered a true white cot. Scott Smith suspects it might be the same as Canadian White Blenheim.

I think Sugar Pearls is considered another white cot of which Mr. Purvis has scions.

If you want a tree of Moniqui, then you better get a move on-- Arboreum has only 4 left, and I just bought one myself last week. They’re going fast!

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Matt-

Have you tried any of the white cots? I have 1 (moniqui which should bloom this spring). I may try to get one more but i wish i knew more about the flavor… I’m not the biggest fan of orange cots.

Bass you sent me wood of a white apricot a long time ago. It sounds like the one you refer to above since it is also a very shy bearer for me. It was from a guy Seip. If you want I can send you some wood back. It is much larger than the other white apricots, you won’t find one that large. All the whites taste really good, production is the whole problem. Last year only Zard produced a big crop for me.

Scott,

Do you suspect that Seip’s White is the same as Yakimeme and Spark’s Mammoth?

By the way-- Bass said he thinks the tree in question was a seedling. Not a known cultivar.

Warm,

I have seen underripe white cots at local grocery stores and farmers markets. Unknown variety and always appear as though they were harvested too soon (hard as a rock). So, I don’t think I’ve tried a truly good white cot yet.

I have a tree of Moniqui on order from Arboreum that I plan to plant this spring… and various generous forum members have sent (/will be sending) me scions of others to graft this spring, including Zard and possibly Lasgherdi Mashad.

I am eager to try these and will be waiting impatiently for them to eventually fruit…

Matt, Seip is a seedling that a Mr. Seip grew I believe. @Bass knows more than me though. I had thought Seip and Yakimene might be the same but this year I noticed they were not ripening at exactly the same time so I now think they are different. Both of them match Spark’s Mammoth in description so I wonder if there is some relation between all three - for example maybe they are both seedlings of Spark’s Mammoth.

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Thanks Scott. I’ll be very interested in the Seip’s white and the Zard. It is difficult to go back to my old house. I’m glad it grew for you.

Sure, PM me your address. The Seips I have very little wood on, it was the 4th variety on the north side of the Zard tree. But it should be graftable.