Chengde Sweet Apricot Kernels

Chengde Sweet Apricot Kernels

　　Sweet apricot kernels are naturally distributed mainly in the Chengde and Zhangjiakou areas of Hebei Province, China. The widely cultivated varieties used in production are superior cultivars selected through artificial means and propagated asexually, offering combined ecological, social, and economic benefits. Their kernels are highly nutritious, rich in both macro and trace elements essential to the human body, and possess excellent health-promoting properties. Sweet apricot trees are highly adaptable, drought-resistant, tolerant of poor soils, have a short cultivation cycle, and deliver high economic returns, making them particularly suitable for planting in areas designated for conversion from farmland back to forest.

Song’eryou is a new cold-resistant, extra-large kernel variety selected in Chengde County, Hebei Province. Each fruit weighs 15.3 grams, the pit weighs 3.09 grams, and a single kernel weighs 1.05 grams. The pit extraction rate is 20.1%, and the kernel extraction rate is 34.2%. The kernels are sweet with a slight lingering bitterness. The tree bears fruit early and can achieve consecutive high yields under harsh, cold, and infertile mountainous conditions with an average annual temperature of 5.5°C and soil depth of just 22 centimeters. Flowering and young fruits can withstand temperatures as low as -2 to -3°C. This variety is suitable for development in the high-cold regions north of the Great Wall.