Taxon: Prunus dulcis (Mill.) D. A. Webb

Common names:

• almond   (Source: World Econ Pl ) – English
  
• bitter almond   (Source: Cornucopia [as Amygdalus communis ‘Amara’]) – English
  
• sweet almond   (Source: HerbSpices [as P. dulcis var. dulcis]) – English
  
• bian tao   (Source: F ChinaEng [as Amygdalus communis]) – Transcribed Chinese
  
• amandier   (Source: Dict Rehm ) – French
  
• amandier commun   (Source: L Noms French ed6 ) – French
  
• Bittermandelbaum   (Source: Zander ed14 [as P. dulcis var. amara]) – German
  
• Knackmandel   (Source: Mansf Ency ) – German
  
• Mandel   (Source: Zander ed17 ) – German
  
• Mandelbaum   (Source: Dict Rehm ) – German
  
• mandorio   (Source: Mansf Ency ) – Italian
  
• āmondo   (Source: Edible Nuts ) – Japanese Rōmaji
  
• amendoeira   (Source: Dict Rehm ) – Portuguese
  
• amêndoa-amarga   (Source: D. Groth, p.c. 2005) – Portuguese (Brazil)
  
• amêndoa-doce   (Source: D. Groth, p.c. 2005) – Portuguese (Brazil)
  
• almendro   (Source: F Int Apico ) – Spanish
  
• bittermandel   (Source: Vara kulturvaxt namn ) – Swedish
  
• mandel   (Source: Vara kulturvaxt namn ) – Swedish
  

More:

see MMPND for additional names in foreign scripts

Economic importance:

• Food additives: flavoring   (fide Cornucopia, as Amygdalus communis ‘Amara’)
  
• Bee plants: honey production   (fide F Int Apico)
  
• Human food: nut   (fide Krussmann)
  
• Gene sources: graft stock relative for almond   (fide Breed Pl Tree Crops 10. 2009)
  
• Gene sources: primary genetic relative of almond   (fide Breed Pl Tree Crops 10. 2009)
  
• Gene sources: secondary genetic relative of peach   (fide Breed Pl Tree Crops 10. 2009)
  
• Materials: lipids   (almond oil for pharmaceutical use fide Food Feed Crops US)
  
• Medicines: folklore   (fide CRC MedHerbs ed2; Herbs Commerce ed2)
  
• Vertebrate poisons: mammals   ("bitter almond" fide Kingsbury, as P. amygdalus ; Cooper & Johnson ed2, as Amygdalus communis)
  

More:

View toxicology references for Prunus dulcis from FDA Poisonous Plant Database

View phytochemical or ethnobotanical data from Duke's Phytochemical and Ethnobotanical Databases

Distributional range:

• ASIA-TEMPERATE
  Western Asia: Israel; Jordan [w.]; Lebanon; Turkey [s.]
  Middle Asia: Turkmenistan; Uzbekistan

• AFRICA
  Macaronesia: Spain - Canary Islands
  Northern Africa: Algeria; Libya; Morocco; Tunisia
• ASIA-TEMPERATE
  Western Asia: Cyprus; Iran
  Caucasus: Armenia
• EUROPE
  Middle Europe: Switzerland
  Southeastern Europe: Bulgaria; Croatia; Italy [incl. Sicily]; Macedonia; Serbia
  Southwestern Europe: France - Corsica; Portugal; Spain [incl. Baleares]

• cultivated mainly in Mediterranean region, temperate Asia, N. & S. America, South Africa, & Australia

References:

• Aldén, B., S. Ryman & M. Hjertson. 2009. Våra kulturväxters namn - ursprung och användning. Formas, Stockholm (Handbook on Swedish cultivated and utility plants, their names and origin).
• Ali, S. I. & S. M. H. Jafri, eds. 1976–. Flora of Libya. [= Amygdalus communis L.].
• Aradhya, M. K. et al. 2004. Molecular characterization of variability and relationships among seven cultivated and selected wild species of Prunus L. using amplified fragment length polymorphism. Sci. Hort. 103:131–144.
• Badenes, M. L. & D. E. Parfitt. 1995. Phylogenetic relationships of cultivated Prunus species from analysis of chloroplast DNA. Theor. Appl. Genet. 90:1035–1041.
• Bortiri, E. et al. 2001. Phylogeny and systematics of Prunus (Rosaceae) as determined by sequence analysis of ITS and the chloroplast trnL-trnF spacer DNA. Syst. Bot. 26:797–807. [this study found a monophyletic subgenus Amygdalus, but without clear affinities among "the dry fruited species" including Prunus dulcis].
• Bortiri, E. et al. 2006. Phylogenetic analysis of morphology in Prunus reveals extensive homoplasy. Pl. Syst. Evol. 259:53–71. [this study obtained a group of all species of section Amygdalus including Prunus dulcis, but without clear relationships to other sections in the subgenus].
• Bouhadida, M. et al. 2007. Chloroplast DNA diversity in Prunus and its implication on genetic relationships. J. Amer. Soc. Hort. Sci. 132:670–679. [this study includes a graft stock hybrid derived from Prunus dulcis × P. nana].
• Browicz, K. & D. Zohary. 1996. The genus Amygdalus L. (Rosaceae): species relationships, distribution and evolution under domestication. Genet. Resources Crop Evol. 43:233. [= Amygdalus communis L.].
• Chinese Academy of Sciences. 1959–. Flora reipublicae popularis sinicae. [= Amygdalus communis L.].
• Craker, L. E. & J. E. Simon, eds. 1986–1987. Herbs, spices, and medicinal plants, 2 vols. [= P. dulcis var. dulcis].
• Davis, P. H., ed. 1965–1988. Flora of Turkey and the east Aegean islands. [= Amygdalus communis L.].
• Demilly, D. et al. 1996. Liste alphabétique des principales espèces de plantes cultivées et de mauvaises herbes. Noms latins et noms français, ed. 6.
• Duke, J. A. et al. 2002. CRC Handbook of medicinal herbs.
• Duke, J. A. 1989. Handbook of Nuts. CRC Press.
• Encke, F. et al. 1993. Zander: Handwörterbuch der Pflanzennamen, 14. Auflage. [= P. dulcis var. amara].
• Erhardt, W. et al. 2002. Zander: Handwörterbuch der Pflanzennamen, 17. Auflage.
• Euro+Med Editorial Committee. Euro+Med Plantbase: the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity (on-line resource).
• Facciola, S. 1990. Cornucopia, a source book of edible plants. [= Amygdalus communis L.].
• Gradziel, T. M. 2009. Almond (Prunus dulcis) breeding. In: Jain, S. M. & P.M. Priyadarshan, eds., Breeding plantation tree crops: temperate species. 1–31. [hybrids with Prunus persica used as graft stock].
• Groth, D. 2005. pers. comm. [re. Brazilian common names].
• Hanelt, P., ed. 2001. Mansfeld's encyclopedia of agricultural and horticultural crops. Volumes 1-6.
• Huxley, A., ed. 1992. The new Royal Horticultural Society dictionary of gardening.
• Kester, D. E. et al. 1991. Almonds (Prunus). Acta Hort. 290:701–760. [as Prunus communis].
• Krüssmann, G. 1984. Manual of cultivated broad-leaved trees and shrubs (English translation of Handbuch der Laubgehölze. 1976).
• Liberty Hyde Bailey Hortorium. 1976. Hortus third.
• Markle, G. M. et al., eds. 1998. Food and feed crops of the United States, ed. 2.
• Martínez-Gómez, P. et al. 2003. New approaches to Prunus tree crop breeding. 1:52–63. [mentions interspecific crosses between Prunus dulcis and P. persica for almond graft stock breeding].
• McGuffin, M., J. T. Kartesz, A. Y. Leung, & A. O. Tucker. 2000. Herbs of commerce, ed. 2.
• Meikle, R. D. 1977–1985. Flora of Cyprus.
• Mowrey, B. D. & D. J. Werner. 1990. Phylogenetic relationships among species of Prunus as inferred by isozyme markers. Theor. Appl. Genet. 80:129–133.
• Ortega-Sada, J. L. 1987. Flora de interes apicola y polinizacion de cultivos.
• Porcher, M. H. et al. Searchable World Wide Web Multilingual Multiscript Plant Name Database (MMPND) (on-line resource).
• Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants.
• Rosengarten, F. 1984. The book of edible nuts.
• Sorkheh, K. et al. 2007. Amplified fragment length polymorphism as a tool for molecular characterization of almond germplasm: genetic diversity among cultivated genotypes and related wild species of almond, and its relationships with agronomic traits. Euphytica 156:327–344. [this study included one accession of a wild Iranian population as Prunus communis that clustered with other wild species and closer to Prunus argentea (as Amygdalus orientalis)].
• Sorkheh, K. et al. 2009. Phenotypic diversity within native Iranian almond (Prunus spp.) species and their breeding potential. Genet. Resources Crop Evol. 56:947–961. [this study evaluated nine samples of this species recognized as Prunus communis].
• Townsend, C. C. & E. Guest. 1966–. Flora of Iraq. [= P. amygdalus (L.) Batsch].
• Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964–1980. Flora europaea.
• Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994–. Flora of China (English edition). [= Amygdalus communis L.].
• Zeinalabedini, M. et al. 2010. The origin and dissemination of the cultivated almond as determined by nuclear and chloroplast SSR marker analysis. Sci. Hort. 120:593–601.

More:

Search AGRICOLA article citation database for citations referencing Prunus dulcis.

Search NCBI's Entrez search engine for PubMed citations referencing Prunus dulcis.

Search Biodiversity Heritage Library for historical publications referencing Prunus dulcis.

Synonyms:

• (=) Amygdalus communis L.
  (previously associated with 243 accessions)
• (≡) Amygdalus dulcis Mill. (basionym)
  
• (=) Prunus amygdalus Batsch
  (previously associated with 82 accessions)
• (=) Prunus communis (L.) Arcang.
  (previously associated with 19 accessions)
• (=) Prunus dulcis var. amara (DC.) Buchheim
  (previously associated with 1 accession)

Check other web resources for Prunus dulcis (Mill.) D. A. Webb:

• Flora Europaea: Database of European Plants (ESFEDS)
• PLANTS: USDA-NRCS Database of Plants of the United States and its Territories
• Flora of China: Online version from Harvard University
• Mansfeld: Mansfeld's World Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Crops
• ePIC: Electronic Plant Information Centre of Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
• AGRICOLA: Article Citation Database or NAL Catalog of USDA's National Agricultural Library
• Entrez: NCBI's search engine for PubMed citations, GenBank sequences, etc.

Check other web resources for images:

• PlantSystematics.org
• Note: Be advised that their identity may be inaccurate. Proper identification of a plant may require specialized taxonomic knowledge or comparison with properly documented herbarium material.

Abbreviations & symbols in GRIN Taxonomy

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