How to grow Apricot in New Zealand

Where to plant

Plant apricots in a sunny, sheltered spot with well-drained soil, protected from spring frosts. They flower early, so a frost at blossom time can take the crop, and wet weather at flowering brings brown rot and bacterial canker. Avoid low spots where cold air settles.

Apricots in New Zealand are grown on seedling rootstocks that give a tree of up to about 6 m; there is no dwarfing rootstock for stone fruit, so keep the tree smaller by pruning, or train it as a fan against a sunny wall or fence.

• Central Otago, Nelson and Marlborough, and dry eastern districts such as Hawke's Bay: the best apricot climates, with dry springs and warm summers. Plant from June to August.
• Canterbury, Otago and Southland: worth growing in a warm, sheltered spot. Choose varieties suited to cooler climates, such as Moorpark or Cluthagold.
• Wellington and the central North Island: choose the warmest, most sheltered spot, protected from wind and late frosts.
• Northland, Auckland, Waikato and Bay of Plenty: marginal, as humid, wet springs bring disease and winters may not give enough chill. Choose a low-chill, disease-hardy variety such as Royal Rosa, or Garden Annie or Katy Cot, which are suited to warmer areas.

Choosing a variety

Varieties sold by New Zealand nurseries include these. Most are self-fertile but crop more heavily and regularly with another apricot nearby.

• Sundrop: a reliable New Zealand variety with large, sweet, juicy freestone fruit over a long season, for eating and preserving. Partly self-fertile and suited to many regions.
• Moorpark: superbly flavoured, medium to large freestone fruit for eating, bottling or drying. Mid season and best in cooler climates. Self-fertile.
• Cluthagold: a cross of Sundrop and Moorpark, very hardy and vigorous, with large orange fruit ripening about two weeks after Sundrop.
• Trevatt: large, sweet, golden fruit, mid to late season, recommended for most areas. Self-fertile.
• Royal Rosa: very early, disease hardy and low chill, recommended for home gardens throughout New Zealand. Self-fertile.
• Garden Annie: early, semi-dwarf and self-fertile, well suited to warmer areas and smaller gardens.

How to plant

1. Choose a sunny, sheltered spot and work organic matter through the soil.
2. Dig a hole twice as wide as the root ball and to the same depth. For bare-root trees, spread the roots over a mound in the hole.
3. Plant at the same depth as before, with the graft union above the soil, and backfill, firming gently.
4. Water in well and mulch, keeping the mulch clear of the trunk.
5. Stake young trees in windy sites.

Watering and feeding

Water well while the tree establishes, during long dry periods and while the fruit is developing. Mulch the root zone each spring.

Feed in early spring with a fertiliser for fruit trees, following the rate on the pack.

Pruning and care through the year

• Prune only in summer, after fruiting, in dry weather. Pruning in winter or in wet weather lets in bacterial canker and silver leaf. Seal large cuts with pruning paste.
• In areas with wet springs, follow a preventative spray programme: copper after leaf fall in autumn and at green tip in spring helps reduce brown rot, bacterial canker and leaf curl.
• Net the tree as the fruit colours if birds are a problem.
• When the fruitlets reach cherry size in late spring, thin pairs and clusters so the remaining fruit is about 5 to 8 cm apart. The fruit sizes up better and branches are less likely to break.

Harvesting

Apricots ripen from early to late summer, depending on variety. Pick when the fruit is fully coloured, smells fragrant and gives slightly to a gentle squeeze, lifting off the spur with an easy twist. They ripen quickly and all at once, so check the tree daily.

Ripe apricots keep only 3 to 5 days in the fridge. Bottle, dry, freeze or make jam from the surplus.

Growing in pots

Apricots are large trees with no dwarfing rootstock, so they are not ideal for pots. A semi-dwarf variety such as Garden Annie can be grown in a large pot, at least 50 cm wide, with good drainage, regular watering and summer pruning to keep it compact.

Using it

Eat apricots fresh off the tree, or bottle, dry, freeze or turn them into jam and chutney. Freestone varieties such as Moorpark and Sundrop are easiest to halve and stone for preserving.