On the origin of almond

Almond, Amygdalus communis L., is an ancient crop of south west Asia. Selec tion of the sweet type marks the beginning of almond domestication. Wild al monds are bitter and eating even a relatively small number of nuts can be f atal. How man selected the sweet type remains a riddle. Also, the wild ance stor of almond has not been properly identified among the many wild almond species. Breeding experiment, which is the most critical test for identifyi ng the wild progenitors of other crops, is ineffective in almond, because i t is interfertile with many wild taxa. The so-called wild A. communis of ce ntral Asia cannot be regarded as a genuine wild form, but as a feral form, or remains of old afforestation. The wild taxa morphologically akin to almo nd,A. korshinskyi (H.-M.) Bomm. and A. webbii Spach, are also feral types o ccurring in the Middle East and southern Europe, respectively. The taxon A. fenzliana (Fritsch) Lipsky is the most likely wild ancestor of almond for three reasons: 1. It is a genuine wild type forming extensive thickets of l arge trees young seedlings and all the intergradations between them in natu re; 2. Its morphology, and particularly the partially pitted grooved nut-sh ell are within the range of variation of almond, and 3. A. fenzliana is nat ive of Armenia and western Azerbaijan in the Middle East where almond was a pparently domesticated.