Hi Dori,

  Here's what I have.

Apricot Seed Oil

NAME: Latin : Prunus Armeniaca

----------------------------------------------------------------------------
----

DISTRIBUTION: Wild apricot is found in abundance in dry temperate regions.
Grows naturally in the north-western Himalayas.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
----

MORPHOLOGY: A moderate-sized tree, about 10m tall, and with a reddish bark.
Leaves are ovate to round -ovate or up -cordate, approximately 5-9 cms long.
Flowers are pinkish white, borne singly and appearing much in advance of the
foliage.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
----

PROPAGATION: Wild apricot grows wild in central and western Himalayas. The
fruits eaten by the cattle, reach the fields with the dung used as manure,
where they sprout naturally and are then transplanted and protected by
farmers.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
----

Hill farmers also raise the seedlings. The seeds are buried under the earth
for three months owing to its hard shells i.e. from July to October. In
October they are sown in the nurseries, and by January the seedlings appear.
The seedlings are ready to be transplanted in December when they are
approximately 2 ft. tall. Wild apricot can also be propagated through
cuttings, the period of planting the cutting is February and March.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
----

The wild apricot is self fertile. It starts bearing fruits when it is 4-5
years old and continues to bear well for 30-35 years. The yield of a
full-bearing tree varies from 80-120 kg.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
----

APRICOT KERNEL: The wild apricot pits yield 22-38 percent kernels which may
be sweet or bitter depending on the type. Sweet kernels resemble almonds in
taste and are used as its substitute in pastes and confectionery and can be
added to apricot jams. An analysis of the kernels gave:
Water 4.3%
Fiber 4.8% Ash 2.6%
Protein 31.4%
Oil 53.4%
Sugar as Dextrose 8.1% (direct) & 11.6% (after conversion)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
----

The fatty oil extracted from the apricot kernels is an important commercial
article. The refined oil bears a pale yellow colour and is of agreeable
flavor and odour.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
----

A sample of pale yellow oil obtained from the wild bitter apricot kernels
showed the following fatty acid composition :
Myristic acid 1.1%
Oleic acid 73.4%
Palmitic acid 3.5%
Linoleic acid 20.0%
Stearic acid 2.0%

Oleic Acid ( cis-9-octadecenoic acid) is a fatty acid found in animal and
vegetable oils. It is a mono-unsaturated fatty acid, due to the presence of
a single double bond. In naturally occurring fatty acids, such as those
found in vegetable oils, the double bonds are all in the cis configuration,
making the molecules bent or curved. This also makes the molecules much less
flexible than those of fully saturated fatty acids (e.g. stearic acid).

Here's the really interesting part.  The pit of the apricot is used to make
laetrile, a cancer treatment drug now banned in this country.  According to
mainstream sources,
the cake after the apricot oil extraction contains amygdalin and "is unfit
for use as cattle feed, it yields 0.06% of hydrocyanic acid. The cake is
utilized as fuel and as fertilizer. It contains Nitrogen 6.64%,  Phosphoric
acid 2.2%, and Potash 1.14%.

Siobhan