A new early ripening apricot cultivar - 'Kuijin'

‘Kuijin’ apricot is an early ripening cultivar bred by Shandong Institute of Pomology. It is a cross from female parent ‘Erhuacao’ and male parent ‘Honghebao’. In 1990, seed from the cross was subjected to cold storage and embryo culture. Plants rescued from culture were transplanted to pots and grown in a greenhouse for 128 days. In 1992, the seedlings were planted and grown outside in a nursery. In 1994, the seedling to be named ‘Kuijin’ was selected based on large fruit size and good quality. In 1995, this seedling was top grafted onto rootstocks for further evaluation. Additional propagation in 2000 and subsequent field observations in Mengyin county showed ‘Kuijin’ to produce large fruits with good flavor and high and stable yields. In 2009, the cultivar was accepted by the crop variety approval committee of Shandong Province. The tree has robust vigor and an open canopy, fruit shape is nearly round with an average fruit weight 89.1 g, fruit skin is orange, and fruit surface is bright, clean and attractive. The flesh is yellow, fine textured, juicy, sour-sweet and aromatic, with soluble solids content of 13.2%. In Mengyin County, flower buds of ‘Kuijin’ swell in early March, and blossom in late March, and the fruit ripens at the end of May with a fruit growth period of 56 d. ‘Kuijin’ is self-fertile and is drought tolerant. Its flowers have a strong ability to resist frost damage in early spring.