Pistachio, also known as pistachio, is one of the four major nut trees in the world. Nuts are highly nutritious food.

Pistachio tree

Pistachio tree (Pistacia vera) is also called pistachio, a small deciduous tree.

The tree is about 10 meters high, odd-pinnate leaves, long age, slow growth, seedlings from the first year of seed planting, it takes at least six years to bear fruit, the fruit rate increases year by year, the fruit is larger, oblong, about 2 cm long, 1 cm wide, yellowish green or pink when ripe.

It originated in Syria, Iraq, Iran, the southwest of the former Soviet Union and southern Europe, and then spread to the remote areas of China.

Morphological characteristics

The tree is about 10 meters tall and has odd-pinnate leaves, with 3 or 5 leaflets, but often 3.

Leaflets ovate or broadly elliptic, 4-10 cm long and 2.5-6.5 cm wide, entire.

Panicle 4 × 10 cm long.

Dioecious, male flowers with perianth segments 3-5, varying in size. Female flowers: tepals 3-5, membranous.

Ovary ovoid, fruit larger, oblong, about 2 cm long, about 1 cm wide.

The apex is sharp and yellowish green or pink when ripe.

Species culture

Legend has it that when Alexander's expedition reached uninhabited areas in the 3rd century BC, food and food for the army became a big problem.

But there is no other way, the soldiers found a valley full of trees, full of fruit, they tried to pick this fruit to satisfy their hunger, the results found that the fruit is not only edible, but also has a fragrance, after eating, it makes people energetic, physically strong and enhance their abilities.

It is also rumored that in the 5th century BC, during the Persian War, the Persians made the army energetic and won battles by eating pistachios.

At that time, when the Persian herdsmen were nomadic, they had to bring enough pistachios before they could move far away.

Distribution range

As pistachio trees (pistachio) are not native seedlings in China, they are introduced into China only in remote areas, and pistachio trees are widely planted in Syria and other countries.

Growing environment

1. Requirements and adaptation to soil

Pistachio trees have strong adaptability to soil and can grow on almost all types of soil, especially in deep, thick, light or dry calcareous sandy loam and yellow loam, in clay loam, gravel soil, shallow chestnut soil, light loam, light salinized soil and so on.

Soil pH7.7-8.0. It can also grow and bear fruit on barren and thin mountain and semi-desert land. Growth requires trace elements such as potassium and iron. Pistachios are not tolerant to salinity and cannot grow in places where they are too wet and stagnant.

2. Requirements and adaptation to moisture

The annual precipitation of pistachio trees in the suitable planting area is generally in the range of 200-400 mm, and it grows well and bears full fruit.

In the areas with annual precipitation below 80mm, it can also grow and blossom and bear fruit tenaciously, but the lack of water in the sensitive period of summer water demand will lead to no harvest of fruit grains.

Iran's best pistachio orchards are considered the worst desert in the world at 4000 feet above sea level, with an average annual rainfall of 10-15 inches, less than 5 feet in the south and east, and temperatures as high as 100 degrees Fahrenheit in the northern part of the plateau in summer.

Annual sunshine in 2500-3000 hours is better, the requirement of air humidity is not high, and the surface water level should be below 3 meters.

3. Requirement and adaptation to heat.

Pistachio is resistant to drought, light, shade, dampness and summer waterlogging, and has strong drought resistance. The main root is 7-8 meters deep in the soil layer, and the horizontal root is well developed, which can extend more than 10 meters. It is the most drought-resistant fruit tree and excellent tree species for soil and water conservation in the world.

Pistachio has a strong ability to adapt to temperature, and can withstand the high temperature of 42 degrees Celsius and the low temperature limit of-26 degrees Celsius in Shufu County, Xinjiang. In Bronte, the summer temperature is 73.4 degrees Fahrenheit, the average temperature is 46 degrees Fahrenheit, and the low temperature is 26.6 degrees Fahrenheit.

In the United States, Arizona can tolerate a low temperature of 6 degrees Fahrenheit, while in Iran, from 15 degrees Fahrenheit to 108 degrees Fahrenheit, and in some parts of the former Soviet Union, Kerman is the best place for pistachios to grow, with an average January temperature variance of 4.4 degrees F and an average temperature of 44.9 degrees F in 7 years. Pistachio trees need cold enough winters to break bud dormancy and long, hot and dry summers for fruit to ripen.

The fruit hanging period requires a large temperature difference between day and night.

The fruit grows well in the range of the highest temperature of 43.8 degrees Celsius and minus 32.8 degrees Celsius.

4. The loess plateau of northern Shaanxi is a suitable area for growth.

The loess plateau of northern Shaanxi, south of Yan'an, the annual rainfall is more than 450 mm, which is a semi-humid area.

Most of the annual rainfall to the north of Yan'an is less than 450 mm, which is a semi-arid area. The vegetation from south to north is deciduous broad-leaved forest, forest steppe and semi-arid steppe.

The area is rich in light energy resources, cold winter, hot summer, short frost-free period, concentrated precipitation and heavy rain.

Annual total radiation 120-130kcal/cm. In 2000, the annual sunshine is about 2500 hours.

The annual average temperature is 8-10 degrees Celsius in the north and 7-9 degrees Celsius in the south, and the coldest monthly temperature is minus 5 degrees Celsius-minus 8 degrees Celsius

The hottest month, except in the western mountains, generally reaches more than 22 degrees Celsius.

The extreme minimum temperature is between minus 22 and minus 26 degrees Celsius, and minus 23 degrees Celsius in the south.

The extreme maximum temperature in the north is 39.

7 degrees Celsius, 39 degrees Celsius in the south, the annual temperature range, except Suide, is 3-4 degrees Celsius lower than that along the Great Wall, and the accumulated temperature of ≥ 10 degrees Celsius is 2800-3500 degrees Celsius.

The accumulated temperature of ≥ 5 degrees Celsius is 3800-4200 degrees Celsius.

The frost-free period is 160-190 days. Annual precipitation, 480-560 mm in the north and 600 mm in the south

Precipitation concentration camps account for 57% of the precipitation in summer, and in September, precipitation accounts for about 70% of the annual precipitation. The relative variability of annual precipitation is 18-24%. The duration of the late frost period is short.

The soil is mainly black loessial soil and some mountain cinnamon soil. Before 1980s, black loessial soil was rich in black-brown or black-brown humus layer, which was the soil of loess parent material.

The decaying layer is deep, up to 120-220 cm.

There are carbonate leaching and deposition in the soil, PH7.5-8.5.There are many pores and microaggregate capacity in the soil.

However, due to climate change and human activities, the soil has been seriously degraded, soil erosion and desertification are becoming more and more serious.

To sum up, pistachio is a suitable tree species in the Loess Plateau of northern Shaanxi. Planting pistachio can reverse the current ecological environment situation.

Main value

Economic value of fruit

Pistachio tree is a kind of plant with long age and slow growth.

It takes at least six years for seedlings to bear fruit from the first year of seed planting, and the fruiting rate increases year by year.

The peak fruit period is from 14 to 70 years after planting.

The grafted seedlings began to bear fruit in the third year and entered the full fruiting stage in the sixth year.

A stout, healthy pistachio tree that begins to bear fruit after six years of planting.

Each tree can harvest 100-200 kg of fresh fruit every year, and the average pistachio tree can produce 70-130 kg of fresh fruit per tree. The dry fruit rate of fresh fruit (commodity) is 30%, that is, 100-200 kg of fresh pistachio, and 30-60 kg can be obtained when forming commodity (dried fruit). For nearly a hundred years.

The value of pistachios is the first of all dried fruits.

Pistachio products are divided into four grades, in the domestic first-class pistachio retail price is 75 yuan per kilogram, second-class 65 yuan, third-class 50 yuan, fourth-class 40 yuan.

Ecological value

At the same time, pistachio is a deep-rooted drought-tolerant tree species, the main root can reach 7 meters deep into the soil layer, the horizontal branch root can reach 10-15 meters, and the tree age can reach 300 years. Therefore, it can be used as an excellent soil and water conservation tree species to promote the virtuous cycle of the ecosystem.