Early apricot

Armeniaca præcoæ, Early Apricot

As early as June 25th, gardeners from Montreuil would bring this small apricot, prized for its exceptional precocity, to the Parisian markets.

Cultivated as an espalier against sun-exposed walls, picked while still crisp before full ripeness, the Early Apricot symbolized the luxury of early produce and the expertise of Ile-de-France arboriculturists in the 19th century.

Poiteau meticulously depicts this modest yet sought-after fruit, a testament to an era when the race for the first harvests was the pride of orchards in the Paris region.

• The Early Apricot tree is distinguished by its moderate size and its green buds that only turn red after fruiting.
• Its large, heart-shaped, beautiful green leaves have small rounded teeth and predominantly alternate veins.
• The flowers, about 27 millimeters in diameter, offer a red calyx punctuated with darker spots, while their white, rounded, and crenellated petals extend beyond the stamens.
• The fruit itself remains small (27 to 34 millimeters in diameter), rounded, depressed at both ends, marked with a lateral furrow that diminishes towards the top.
• Its slightly pubescent skin turns a bright yellow when ripe, enhanced with a vibrant red on the sun-exposed side.
• Its oval and smooth pit contains an almond. Harvested before complete ripeness, it nevertheless develops a good scent and firm flesh appreciated by Parisian gourmets.

This plate is taken from Poiteau and Turpin's Traité des Arbres Fruitiers, a botanical encyclopedia published between 1807 and 1835, a major reference in 19th-century naturalistic illustration. It combines the rigor of scientific drawing with a rare artistic sensibility, characteristic of the great plates from the golden age of illustrated botany.