Standard apricots, a temperate stone fruit, generally do not thrive in Florida’s climate, making successful cultivation extremely rare. These trees are fundamentally incompatible with the state’s mild winters, which prevents them from completing a necessary biological cycle. While they may survive briefly, they typically fail to produce reliable harvests.
Why Apricots Need Cold Weather
Apricots, like many deciduous trees, require a sustained period of cold temperatures to transition from winter dormancy into spring flowering and growth. This biological requirement is the chilling requirement, measured in “chill hours.” A chill hour is defined as one hour of temperature exposure between 32°F and 45°F during the dormant season.
Most traditional apricot varieties need 600 to 900 chill hours to break dormancy effectively. Insufficient chilling causes a physiological disorder resulting in delayed or uneven bud break. This leads to a prolonged bloom, poor fruit set, and the eventual decline of the tree.
Florida’s climate makes achieving this requirement almost impossible, especially in Central and South Florida, which receive very few chill hours annually. Even North Florida’s accumulation is often inconsistent and insufficient for standard varieties. The lack of a proper cold period disrupts the tree’s hormonal balance, preventing the synchronized growth needed for a productive fruiting cycle.
Testing Low-Chill Apricot Cultivars
Horticulturalists have developed specific low-chill apricot cultivars to overcome the species’ natural cold weather dependency. Varieties such as ‘Katy,’ ‘Gold Kist,’ and ‘Tropic Gold’ are bred to require a lower number of chill hours, often ranging from 200 to 350 hours. This lower requirement theoretically makes them suitable for the milder winters found in North and Central Florida.
Growing even low-chill apricots in the state remains a high-risk endeavor with inconsistent results. Many growers report that while the trees may bloom, they often fail to set fruit reliably. Furthermore, Florida’s warm, humid springs and summers create an environment highly conducive to fungal diseases and soil-borne issues like nematodes, to which stone fruits are particularly susceptible.
The University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) has not recommended planting apricots in Zone 9 due to insufficient chilling and disease pressure. While some experimental varieties have been tested, reliable commercial success or consistent backyard production remains elusive across the state.
Alternative Fruits That Thrive in Florida
For gardeners seeking a stone fruit experience without the apricot’s demanding cold requirement, Florida offers several viable alternatives.
Low-Chill Peaches and Nectarines
Low-chill peaches and nectarines are the most successful substitutes. Specific cultivars like ‘UF Best’ or ‘TropicBeauty’ need as few as 150 chill hours to set fruit. These varieties are bred specifically for the state’s climate and perform well in Central and North Florida.
Loquat and Tropical Apricot
The loquat, sometimes called Japanese Plum, is a highly adaptable evergreen tree that thrives throughout most of Florida. It produces small, orange, sweet-tart fruit in late winter to early spring and is resistant to common pests and diseases. The tropical apricot (Mammea americana) is a different species that produces a large, round fruit with a flavor profile sometimes compared to apricot and berries, and it does well in the heat of South Florida.