A Search for Hardy Apricots 
The hardy apricots of the world are to be found in North Manchuria and East 
Siberia. The following is from my Spring List issued by the Department of Horti¬ 
culture, State College,Brookings, South Dakota, March 24, 1934: 
Manchu Apricot . Nos. 1-25 
Offered for the first time . In my 1924 tour to north Manchuria, home of the 
old Manchu conquerors of China, I became interested in the apricots native of the 
region between Harbin, on the Siberian railway, and the Amur River. This section 
of China comes up like a wedge into eastern Siberia and is cut through by the 
Siberian railway. The conditions are really those of east Siberia on either side 
with minimum temperature of about 47 degrees below zero Fahrenheit. I saved seed 
from many fruits and now have 32 seedlings. All of these are of excellent quality. 
The size varies more or less and there is no good chance to determine the relative 
superiority as the seedlings were planted very closely in the row. They are offered 
herewith for preliminary trial as Manchu Nos. 1—23 inclusive. So far, 23 out of 
the 32 seedlings have been budded. The trees are a beautiful sight in bloom. The 
large flowers, white with distinct pink tinge, appear early before the leaves. The 
fruit is yellow, somewhat smaller than the apricots of commerce, and makes delicious 
preserves. 
Announcement December 15. 1954 
There will be no trees of the Manchu apricots available for Spring 1935. There 
were no plum seedlings available for budding in 1933 and 1934. The original Manchu 
apricot trees are still flourishing but scions are not usually acceptable to amateurs. 
The scions of all new fruit trees is one dollar per foot as far as available. 
I returned October 19, 1934 from ray seventh tour of agricultural exploration 
to Russia. This tour was made at the invitation of the Lenin Academy of Agricultural 
Sciences at Leningrad. Many new seeds and plants were collected. 
East Siberian Apricots 
It will interest you to know that on this 1954 tour I found another species of 
apricot in East Siberia which will be still hardier than the Manchu and will also be 
propagated as rapidly as possible. A lot of good plum pits were picked this year 
so we hope to have seedlings for budding this year and next year. 
N. E. Hansen 
Professor of Horticulture 
State College 
Brookings, South Dakota 
