Prunus armeniaca ‘Alfred’- Apricot – 5 gallon

The apricot is an Asian fruit tree that is not particularly well-adapted to our climate. While they are perfectly cold hardy here, they tend to bloom early, subjecting the blossoms and young fruit to damage by the late Spring frosts that are not unusual for our area. Moreover, fluctuating winter temperatures, common in our area but uncommon in Asia, can cause flower buds to be damaged long before Spring bloom. Research efforts at Cornell University to create an apricot better adapted to our climate resulted in the 1965 introduction of ‘Alfred’. It’s a small but delicious, juicy, roundish, orange-yellow apricot. Very productive, self-fruitful (can bear more heavily with a second variety), and hardy to at least -30°F (zone 4), it ripens mid-season to late-season in early to mid-August. Most importantly it’s consistently later blooming than other apricots, helping it to avoid Spring frosts.