Studies on Flowering Behavior and Fruit Characters of Almond (Prunus amygdalus) Varieties under Temperate Climatic Conditions of Kodaikanal Tract of Tamil Nadu

The sweet cultivated almond originated from bitter-seeded species that evolved in the deserts and foothills of central and southwest Asia. Almonds were first introduced to California through the missions, but the large commercial industry was initiated from trees brought with settlers from the eastern U.S. that have thrived in the Mediterranean climate of the Central Valley of California. Under Kodaikanal condition there is lack of awareness among the farmers on knowing of almond trees and its cultivation. So in this context, the research was conducted at Horticultural Research Station, Kodaikanal, Tamil Nadu. Seven varieties were evaluated in this study and among the varieties Merced recorded maximum plant height (2.96 m), stem girth (12.95 cm), canopy spread (2.19 and 2.00 m) and number of branches (12.67), followed by the variety IXL recorded plant height (2.50 m), stem girth (11.63 cm) and number of branches (10.67). Maximum number of fruits per tree (180), Individual fruit weight (8.97 g), length and girth of the fruit (5.7 and 7.9 cm) was also recorded in the variety IXL. The other nut characters like nut length, nut width, highest average nut weight and nut thickness was also maximum in the variety IXL (3.84 cm), (2.81 cm), (3.28 g) and (1.84 cm) followed by the variety Pranyaj.