0063 



ALMOND TREE. 



Family: ROSACEAE. 



Reproductive system: ICOSANDRY, MONOGYNY. 



Duhamel tells us that the seeds of this tree, the oriental almond, Amygdalus 

 argentea, LAM. [Translators note: now designated Prunus argentea], were sent from the 

 Levant to the Duke of Ayen about 1 750, and they came up very well. Since then, the 

 oriental almond has been acclimatized in almost all of France. The branch used as the 

 model in the adjoining figure blossomed in February 1807 and its fruit ripened the 

 following August. The tree is about twelve to fifteen feet high. The branches are diffuse 

 and irregular. The leaves are alternate, oblong, quite entire, whitish, and satiny, especially 

 on their undersides. The flowers, on the ends of the branches, are delicate pink and are 

 solitary or in pairs. The calyx is shaped like a small cup underneath; on top it terminates 

 in five lobes. The corolla is made up of five petals arranged like a rose, rounded or 

 slightly indented at their tops. A large number of stamens are inserted into the calyx. The 

 ovary is superior, crowned by a style and stigma. The fruit is a cottony drupe, grooved on 

 one side and containing one or two bitter almonds. 



FLOWERS: February and March. 



RANGE: the Levant. Like the common almond, it's been growing in France for a 

 long time. 



USES. Like all the trees of this genus, it heralds the return of spring. Sometimes 

 the flowers even bloom in the snow. As a result they may suffer from frost, but in the 

 interior of the country and in the south of France they're hardly damaged at all. In the 

 north, however, the tree is definitely vulnerable to hard frosts. The early bloom and pretty 

 colors of its flowers makes it sought after for large 



