Subfamily Amygdaloideae Rank Species | ||
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Similar Prunus alleghaniensis, Prunus sibirica, Prunus hortulana, Prunus prostrata, Prunus andersonii | ||
Prunus brigantina, called Briançon apricot, marmot plum, and alpine apricot, is a wild tree species native to France and Italy. It is the only apricot-like Prunus species native to Europe.
Contents
The fruit is similar to the commercial apricot Prunus armeniaca, and is edible. An edible oil produced from the seed, 'huile des marmottes', is used in France.
Description
Unlike the other closely related species known as apricots, the fruit is smooth rather than hairy.
Taxonomy
Prunus brigantina is considered a member of the apricot group, along with P. armeniaca, P. mandshurica, P. mume, and P. sibirica, but its genetic relationships to other Prunus species are not yet clear, as an initial molecular phylogeny found that various DNA sequences gave ambiguous indications, and it did not appear to belong in a clade with Prunus armeniaca.
