Kitchen Garden

APRICOTS

In the 18th century, the naturalist Gilbert White opined that apricots could only be grown to perfection in England; and a hundred years later it was fashionable for landowners to grow apricots on the walls of their tenants’ cottages. The huge number cropped every year at Aynho, in Northamptonshire, gave it the name of Apricot Village, but the ‘dangling apricocks’ mentioned by Shakespeare are not much seen growing in this country today.

A resident of Aynho told me the other day that, despite the hot summer, he had no more than three or four apricots on his one tree this year. Due to the cold spring, there were not enough bees to pollinate the flowers. Last year, however, following a cold winter, an early spring and a warm summer, his tree had

produced 104 fruit. The change of climate which we keep hearing about may well provide better apricot-growing conditions in future.

Most importantly, an apricot tree grown outside should be against a south-facing wall, in well-drained soil rich in lime. It should be planted in autumn and ideally trained in the shape of a fan. If few insects are around in spring – apricot is usually the first fruit tree to flower – the blossom should be pollinated by hand with a small paintbrush.

Of the varieties recommended, Sibleys can be grown in a large pot near the house, and Tomcot has large fruit with deep orange flesh. Moorpark, which is said to have a rich, juicy taste, must have improved since Jane Austen’s day when, in Mansfield Park, a dinner-party guest stated that this same variety had no more flavour than a potato.

Most of the apricots which we may buy in a supermarket at this time of year, from elsewhere in Europe, tend to be dry and woolly, and can only be enjoyed if stewed first. I have eaten deliciously fresh apricots in France, but I think the French keep the best for themselves. However, by growing them in the garden at home, one may come close to agreeing that Gilbert White was right.