Mountain almond is a broomlike wild shrub or small tree of the Middle East, typically 0.75 to 2 m tall, that grows in arid or semiarid hills. It is mainly valued for erosion control and windbreaks rather than as an ornamental.
Family
Rosaceae (Rose family)
Grows as
Shrub
Light
Full sun
Water
Water sparingly once established; let the soil dry out between waterings.
Soil
Well-drained, sandy or rocky soil; tolerates poor, alkaline ground.
Temperature
Hardy in cool to hot dry climates; protect young plants from frost.
How easy
Easy
Safety
Toxic to cats and dogs (ASPCA).
Edible
Yes, some parts
Native range
Türkiye to N. Iran and Arabian Pen.
Climate
subtropical
About
Prunus arabica is a species of wild almond found across the Middle East. It is a broomlike shrub typically 0.75 to 2 m tall, with brown bark. Its leaves have a 5-8 mm petiole and the leaf blades are 15 to 44 mm long and 3 to 10 mm wide. Its inflorescences have dark red hypanthia and sepals (green on the interior of the sepals), and white, pale pink or pink petals. The flowers are borne on a pedicel about 3 mm long, which lengthens to 6 mm when the fruit is fully developed.
It prefers to grow in arid or semiarid areas at 500 to 2700 m above sea level. A full genetic and morphological analysis suggests that Prunus scoparia may be conspecific with it; certainly it is its closest relative. It is occasionally cultivated for erosion control, as its brushy growth form makes a good windbreak.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Prunus arabica by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.