COMMON ALMOND-TREE. 225 
almond-trees, quite hoary with frost, in the evening, will be of a brilliant rose- 
colour the following morning, and will often retain its beauty for more than a 
month, the flowers never falling off till the trees are covered with verdure. Tht 
fruit is not so attractive as that of the peach ; because, instead of preserving the 
same delicious pulp, its pericarp shrivels as it ripens, and becomes a horny kind 
of husk, which opens of its own accord, at the end of maturity. The kernel of 
some varieties of the almond is not defended by so thick a shell as that of the 
peach and nectarine, for it is often so tender that the nuts break, when shaken 
together. The chief distinction between these fruits is, that the almond has a 
stone, covered with a coriaceous, dry, hairy covering, while that of the peach 
and nectarine is developed in a rich, juicy pulp, surrounded by a smooth or 
downy skin. 
Varieties. In a wild state, the common almond is sometimes found with bitter 
kernels, and at other times sweet; in a similar manner as the Grammont oak, 
(Qxiercus hispanica,) which, in Spain, generally bears sweet, edible acorns, but 
sometimes produces only such as are bitter. For this reason we describe the 
bitter and sweet almond under one head, and consider them only as varieties of 
the same species, which are as follows : * 
1. A. c. amara, De Candolle. Bitter-kerneled Common Almond -tree ; Amandier 
amer, of the French; and Gemeiner Mandelbanm. of the Germans. The flowers 
of this variety are large. Petals pale pink, with a tinge of rose-colour at the 
base. Styles nearly as long as the stamens, and tomentose in the lower part. 
Seeds bitter. There are two forms of the bitter almond; one with a hard shell, 
and the other with a brittle one. The tree is cultivated in the south of Europe 
for its fruit, which is preferred, for some purposes in medicine and domestic econ- 
omy, to that of the sweet almond, particularly for giving a flavour, and for stocks 
for grafting the other varieties upon, as well as the peach, apricot, and even the 
plum. 
2. A. c. dulcis, De Candolle. Sweet-kerneled Common Almond-tree ; Aman- 
dier a petits fruits, Amande donee, of the French ; and Siisser Mandelbanm, of 
the Germans. The leaves of this variety are of a grayish-green. The flowers 
put forth before the leaves ; styles much longer than the stamens ; fruit ovate- 
compressed, acuminate ; shell hard ; kernel sweet-flavoured. It is cultivated in 
the south of Europe, being generally propagated by grafting standard high on the 
bitter almond, or on any strong-growing seedling almonds, in order to ensure 
the sweetness of its fruit. 
3. A. c. macrocarpa, De Candolle. Large-fruited Common Almond-tree; 
Amandier d gros fruits. Amandier des dames, of the French. The leaves of 
this variety are broad, acuminate, and slightly gray. The peduncles short, and 
turgid ; flowers of a very pale rose-colour, large, and put forth before the leaves ; 
petals broadly obcordate, waved ; fruit large, umbilicate at the base, acuminate 
at the tip ; shell hard, and kernel always sweet. There are two sub-varieties, 
one with the fruit rather smaller, commonly called, in France, amandier snltane ; 
and the other, with fruit still smaller, called there amandier pistache. The kernels 
of both of these are considered remarkably delicate, and are preferred for the 
table. The tree of this variety is large and vigorous, of rapid growth, somewhat 
fastigiate, and is propagated by grafting on the common species, or on any free- 
growing variety of plum. From the magnitude and beauty of its flowers, which 
are produced earlier than those of any other kind, it is preferred to all others for 
the purposes of ornament. 
4. A. c. persicoides, De Candolle. Peach-like-leaved Common Almond-tree ; 
Amandier-pecher, of the French. The leaves of this variety greatly resemble 
J those of the peach-tree. Fruit ovate, obtuse, with a slightly succulent husk; 
shell of a dark, yellowish colour ; and the kernel sweet-flavoured. Du Hamel 
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