Apricot
UntestedNo field data in this species yet. The physics should carry over, but nobody has run it — a pre-test before a full install is the right first step.
Performance
Untested. There is no FloraPulse data in apricot yet: the first apricot pilot, with a grower in Patterson, California, starts in 2026, and the rating here will follow what that pilot shows. Sensors generally work well in stone fruits, and apricot is Prunus, the genus that includes almond, prune and cherry, but that has not been confirmed in apricot itself. The dashboard profile (stage triggers, the critical Stage III and early post-harvest windows, the late post-harvest deficit thresholds) is built from the published apricot deficit-irrigation literature, not from FloraPulse data.
Installation Tips
- Install after leaf out on a 2” branch or the trunk, the same install as prune and cherry (the pilot will confirm it holds in apricot).
- Apricot blooms in February, earliest of the stone fruits: reinstall after winter before bloom so readings are live through the frost window.
- Full irrigation through the four weeks before harvest (Stage III) and the two months after it; pit hardening and late post-harvest are the only windows where a deficit is sanctioned.
Known Issues
- Sensor install site can get blocked and sensor will read too wet, with little to no diurnal pattern. Reinstall.
- Sensors can get disconnected from xylem due to breaks in the mating compound. The sensors will then read very negative values during hot part of day. Reinstall.
References
- Establishing a Reference Baseline for Midday Stem Water Potential in Olive and Its Use for Plant-Based Irrigation Management (the Prunus baseline). Shackel et al. 2021
- Threshold Values of Plant Water Status for Scheduling Deficit Irrigation in Early Apricot Trees. Temnani et al. 2023
- Apricot tree response to withholding irrigation at different phenological periods. Torrecillas et al. 2000