Editing Almond (section)

== Description ==
The almond is a [[deciduous]] tree growing to {{convert|3|-|4.5|m|0|abbr=off}} in height,<ref name=eb/><ref>{{Cite book |last=U.S. Department of the Army |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=T2p7DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA10 |title=The Official U.S. Army Illustrated Guide to Edible Wild Plants |publisher=[[Lyons Press]] |year=2019 |isbn=978-1-4930-4039-1 |location=Guilford, CT |pages=10 |oclc=1043567121}}</ref> with a trunk of up to {{convert|30|cm|0|abbr=off}} in diameter. The young [[twig]]s are green at first, becoming purplish where exposed to sunlight, then grey in their second year. The [[leaves]] are {{convert|3|-|5|in|cm|0|abbr=on|order=flip}} long,<ref>Bailey, L.H.; Bailey, E.Z.; the staff of the Liberty Hyde Bailey Hortorium. 1976. ''Hortus third: A concise dictionary of plants cultivated in the United States and Canada''. Macmillan, New York.</ref> with a serrated margin and a {{convert|2.5|cm|0|abbr=on}} [[Petiole (botany)|petiole]].

The fragrant [[flower]]s are white to pale pink, {{convert|3|-|5|cm|0|abbr=on}} diameter with five petals, produced singly or in pairs and appearing before the leaves in early spring.<ref name=eb/><ref name=rushforth>{{cite book|last=Rushforth |first=Keith |title=Collins wildlife trust guide trees: a photographic guide to the trees of Britain and Europe |publisher=Harper Collins |location=London |year=1999 |isbn=0-00-220013-9}}</ref><ref name=rhs>{{cite book |last=Griffiths |first=Mark D. |author2=Anthony Julian Huxley |title=The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening |publisher=Macmillan Press |location=London |year=1992 |isbn=0-333-47494-5}}</ref> Almond trees thrive in Mediterranean climates with warm, dry summers and mild, wet winters.<ref name=eb/> The optimal temperature for their growth is between {{convert|15|and|30|C|F}} and the tree buds have a [[chilling requirement]] of 200 to 700 hours below {{convert|7.2|°C|°F|abbr=on}} to break dormancy.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Fruit Cultural Data — P – California Rare Fruit Growers, Inc.|url=https://crfg.org/home/library/crfg-fruit-list/fruit-cultural-data-2/fruit-cultural-data-p/|access-date=2020-06-12|language=en-US|archive-date=19 March 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220319062538/https://crfg.org/home/library/crfg-fruit-list/fruit-cultural-data-2/fruit-cultural-data-p/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Almonds begin bearing an economic crop in the third year after planting. Trees reach full bearing five to six years after planting. The fruit matures in the autumn, 7–8 months after flowering.<ref name=rhs/><ref>{{cite web |url=http://coststudies.ucdavis.edu/files/almondvs08sprink.pdf |title=University of California Sample Cost Study to Produce Almonds |access-date=17 March 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120326084336/http://coststudies.ucdavis.edu/files/almondvs08sprink.pdf |archive-date=26 March 2012 }}</ref>

The almond fruit is {{cvt|3.5|-|6|cm|in|frac=8}} long. It is not a [[nut (fruit)|nut]] but a [[drupe]]. The outer covering, consisting of an outer [[exocarp]], or skin, and [[mesocarp]], or flesh, fleshy in other members of ''Prunus'' such as the [[plum]] and [[cherry]], is instead a thick, leathery, grey-green coat (with a downy exterior), called the hull. Inside the hull is a woody [[endocarp]] which forms a reticulated, hard shell (like the outside of a peach pit) called the [[pyrena]]. Inside the shell is the edible seed, commonly called a nut.<ref name=eb/> Generally, one seed is present, but occasionally two occur. After the fruit matures, the hull splits and separates from the shell, and an [[abscission layer]] forms between the stem and the fruit so that the fruit can fall from the tree.<ref>{{cite web |first=David |last=Doll |date=22 June 2009 |title=The Seasonal Patterns of Almond Production |url=https://thealmonddoctor.com/2009/06/22/the-seasonal-patterns-of-almond-production/ |website=The Almond Doctor |publisher=University of California Cooperative Extension |access-date=14 August 2018 |archive-date=14 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180814142153/https://thealmonddoctor.com/2009/06/22/the-seasonal-patterns-of-almond-production/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> During harvest, mechanised tree shakers are used to expedite fruits falling to the ground for collection.<ref name=eb/>

{{gallery|mode=packed
|بادام و شکوفه بادام.JPG|Almond blossoms
|Kulturmandel unreife Früchte.JPG|Young almond fruit
|Green almonds.jpg|Green almonds
|Madrigueras (20578932389) (cropped).jpg|Mature almond nut
|Almond shell.jpg|Almond shell
|Almond with two kernels.jpg|A rare double-seeded shell
|Almonds.png|Harvested almonds
|Blanched almonds.jpg|[[Blanching (cooking)|Blanched]] almonds
|title=Gallery of almonds}}