#edibletrees

Thinking about growing your own sustainable food? Look no further than the delicious, sunshiny, yummy apricot! Packed with tons of nutrition and zero guilt, the apricot is a gift you can feel good about giving, no matter the occasion. One mature standard apricot tree yields at least a bushel, if not more. That's quite a few apricots!

You can spend many an afternoon preparing for holiday gifting. Let’s say you start with a Harlayne Apricot Tree. If you plant in zones 8, 6, or 4 and are patient, you'll have gifts from this freestone late in the season. What can you make? Apricots are multi-taskers so you won't have much trouble thinking something up, but just in case, here are a few ideas:

Recipes

From marmalades to grilled side dishes, ice cream sauces, and additions to homemade bread, you'll never run out of ways to cook with apricots.

Snack Bars

Who doesn't love snack bars? It's easy: measure out ingredients into a jar and give it with a recipe card. If you haven't tried apricot bars, you're in for a treat. So simple and yet so effective. This is sunshine in a jar that says "I love you" in every bite. These bars give you every reason to ask your local nursery experts for advice on planting your sustainable gift-giving option right in your backyard. 

Give a Tree

Maybe you already have an apricot tree and you know how fun gifting apricots is. What better reason to give a tree to a friend? 

But you can't afford to give a tree, you say. Ah, but you can. If you take the price of an apricot tree at $44.95 and ask yourself how many times you eat dinner out, chances are you've paid for an apricot tree more times than you can count.

Add to that amount the shipping, and compare it to the number of times you've bought lunch on the run, donuts for the office, pizza for the kids, and who knows what else, and you’ve paid the price of one apricot tree many times over. This means you can afford to gift a tree!

If you need another reason, gifting a tree makes the perfect memorial gift for a friend who's lost a loved one. 

Apricots are one of the most adaptable fruits there is, as well as one of the healthiest. Do you know of someone who's watching their waistline? You sure don't want to show up at the door with candy. But apricots? That's a whole different thing since there are only 79 calories in one cup. You could make a fresh salad, toss in a handful of chopped apricots, and treat your friend to something extra special.

Those are just a few ideas for using apricots as gifts. Perhaps you've never thought of it before, but there are many benefits to this sweet little fuzzy fruit, and once you know what they are, you'll be planting that tree in your backyard and spreading the love. 

Apricots are a must-have, offering advantages from antioxidants to eye and skin health and potassium. Did you know apricots are believed to protect your liver? And if you need more convincing, are you aware that apricots are so hydrating they are even used in skincare products?

As far as conditions go, apricots are used to treat infections, constipation, and other ailments. As a great source of vitamin A, they contain virtually no cholesterol, fat, or sodium.