White Ume

Apricot

Size

Small (~1 in.) - notably smaller than true apricots

Shape

Round; orange skin developing a red blush at harvest

Flavor

Tart/sour - not intended for fresh eating

Texture

Firm at harvest; picked underripe for pickling/salting, riper for liqueur

Ripening window

Very early (mid-May); blooms extremely early (late Jan - early/mid Feb even in mild climates)

Best uses

Pickling (umeboshi-style), dehydrating, candying, preserving in sugar, or infusing into liqueur (umeshu) - not a fresh-eating apricot despite the trade name

Pollination

Partially self-fertile; best fruit set with another Prunus mume variety nearby, not a regular apricot

Tree size

12-16 ft (can maintain at ~8 ft with summer pruning)

Notes

This is Prunus mume (Japanese/Chinese flowering apricot, the species used for umeboshi and umeshu) - a genuinely different species from the other five entries here, which are all Prunus armeniaca (common apricot). The specific cultivar sold as "White Ume" is 'Shiro-Kaga', identified by its white, single-petal blossoms (vs. the pink double blooms of the similarly-marketed 'Peggy Clarke'). Grown primarily as an ornamental for its fragrant blossoms, with fruit as a secondary benefit. Chill requirement ≤400 hours, zones 6-10/11. Blooms in Jan-Feb even in mild climates - by far the highest late-frost risk of any variety in this collection; a hard freeze will routinely kill bloom and fruit set most years in zone 8a Texas. Origin China/Korea (despite the strong cultural association with Japan), cultivated over 1,500 years across East Asia.