Self-Fertile Apricot Varieties: One-Tree Apricots
Most apricots are already self-fertile, which makes them one of the easiest stone fruits to plant as a single tree — and yet apricots fail to crop more often than almost anything else in a home orchard. The reason is not pollination but timing. Apricots bloom earlier than any other common fruit tree, often in the first warm week of spring, and a late frost on open blossom costs the entire year's fruit. In much of the country that happens more springs than not.
So the column that matters here is not self-fertility but chill and bloom timing: a higher chill requirement generally means a later, safer bloom. These 12 varieties crop alone, and the practical strategy is to plant them where spring arrives slowly — a north-facing slope, the cool side of a building, anywhere that delays bud break by the week that saves the crop. Avoid the sunny south wall that suits figs; for apricots it is the worst possible site. Sorted by chill requirement.
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| Variety | Chill hrs | Ripens | Zones | Notes | Where to buy |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gold Kist | 300 | Late May to June | 7-9 | sweet-tart, good fresh and for canning — A true low-chill pick that fruits in warm-winter zones and ripens 3-4 weeks ahead of Blenheim. | Browse growers |
| Katy | 300–400 | Late May to early June | 7-9 | mild, sweet, sub-acid, juicy; best fresh — A popular low-chill apricot for warm-winter regions; Dave Wilson lists it around 400 chill hours, a bit higher than Gold Kist. | Browse growers |
| Autumn Glo | 500 | August to September | 4-6 | great tasting fresh apricot — By far the latest apricot on USU's table, ripening after every other cultivar.Chill spec of 500 hours or less is from Dave Wilson Nursery, which lists its range as zones 7-9 against USU's 4-6 - treat the zone range as unsettled and check locally before planting. | Browse growers |
| Blenheim | 400–500 | Late June | 7-9 | sweet, aromatic, richly flavored fresh and dried — The California heirloom benchmark for flavor, but it blooms early so it needs a mild-winter, low-frost site. | Buy $59.95 |
| Flavor Giant | 500 | Early July | 5-8 | firm texture, mild flavor; good fresh and cannedDave Wilson Nursery specs it at 500 chill hours or less, making it the lowest-chill self-fertile pick on USU's table. Note the two sources disagree on range - USU lists zones 5-8, Dave Wilson lists 7-9. | Browse growers |
| Puget Gold | 600 | Early August | 4-9 | sweet; good fresh, canned, and driedThe latest-ripening apricot on USU's table apart from Autumn Glo, which pushes the fruit past the worst of early-summer rot pressure. USU notes it handles cool springs. Chill figure of 600 hours is from Dave Wilson Nursery's variety spec. The two sources disagree on cold hardiness - USU lists zones 4-9, Dave Wilson lists 6-9 - so treat the cold end as unsettled and check locally before planting in zone 4 or 5. | Buy $64.99 |
| Tilton | 600 | July | 5-9 | distinctive tangy flavor; a classic canning and drying apricotUSU lists Tilton among the winter-hardy, later-blooming cultivars. Chill figure of 600 hours is from Dave Wilson Nursery's variety spec. | Buy $59.95 |
| Chinese | 700 | Late June to July | 4-7 | good flavor and texture; the pit is an edible sweet nutUSU names it among the winter-hardy, later-blooming apricots, which is the whole game in a frost-prone yard. Chill figure of 700 hours is from Dave Wilson Nursery's variety spec. | Buy $64.99 |
| Harcot | 600–700 | Early to mid July | 5-8 | sweet, rich, low-acid; excellent fresh — A cold-hardy Canadian variety with unusually good disease resistance and a later bloom that helps dodge spring frost. | Buy $59.95 |
| Harglow | 600–700 | Late July to early August | 5-8 | sweet, firm, orange flesh; good fresh and canned — Its late bloom helps it dodge spring frosts, and its compact habit suits small yards. | Buy $64.99 |
| Moorpark | 600–700 | Mid to late July | 5-8 | rich, sweet, intensely aromatic; excellent fresh — A famous old English variety prized for flavor, though fruit ripens unevenly on the tree. | Buy $59.95 |
| Goldcot | 750–800 | Mid to late July | 4-8 | tangy-sweet, firm; good fresh and for jam — A Michigan-bred, cold-hardy, self-fertile apricot well suited to the colder and more humid eastern US; late bloomer. | Browse growers |