Know how to find the best apricots at the right time of the year with our guide to apricot season.
📋 What's New In This Post (9/8/25) - Updated with personal experiences from traveling during apricot season to different states.
✍🏻 Featured Comment - Melodie says "Very very interesting a lot of facts I didn't know about apricots like velvet apricots!!"
In Search of Great Apricots
There is nothing like a perfectly ripe, juicy piece of stone fruit. For years I only really ever had peaches or nectarines. I never had anything else growing up. Never a plum, apricot, or cherry.
As an adult I have certainly expanded my horizons. I have come to know that a really good apricot is truly a treasure. I hope that I can help you find one for yourself.
Finding a good apricot must start with knowing when they are in season and that all starts with learning where they grow. I am going to share with you what I have learned from traveling the country from coast to coast during apricot season. There are some states that are certainly better suited for apricots than others.
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📅 When Does the Season Begin and End?
Even thought apricots bloom early than peaches or nectarines, you still find them showing up at stores the same time as peaches and nectarines in late April to early May (For example I bought my first apricots on May 14th). The California crop wraps up in late July. This is the time of year where most grocery stores will swipe the citrus for the stone fruit.
The best California apricots are had right at the start of the season. The larger ones you find later in the season tend to be mealy and very unappetizing.
The Washington apricot season runs from June to August. The month of August pretty much exclusively belongs to Washington. The Michigan apricot season is a little later and shorter than the Washington season, running from July to August with some late varieties ripening in September.
🇺🇸 Season by State
From traveling over the last 5 years I have learned a lot about apricot season. I know where they grow best and where they may be hard to if not impossible to come by.
Below you will find a list of states that I know that grow apricots and when you can expect to find them in season year. Naturally with the weather it can change from year to year.
| Southern Michigan | mid July - early August |
| Northern Michigan (incl. Traverse City) | end of July - early August |
| Oregon (incl. Hood River) | early June - late August |
| California | late April - early July |
| Washington | early June - late August |
| Ohio | end June - mid July |
| Idaho | July - August |
| New York | mid July - early August |
| Pennsylvania | early July - late July |
| Maryland | mid June - early August |
| Iowa | July - early August |
| Indiana | end June - mid July |
| Illinois | end June - mid July |
| Utah | late June to early August |
🚫 Where Do Apricots Not Grow Well?
Apricots can be a tricky fruit to grow as compared with other stone fruit such as peaches and cherries. It blooms before other stone fruit, which means it's more vulnerable to frost damage.
This is an issue in northern states like Michigan, Wisconsin, and Maine. Michigan I have been able to find apricots at farmers market but some years there are none to be found at all. I couldn't really track down any orchards in Wisconsin or Maine that grow apricots. Michigan is moderated by the Great Lakes, so there is more hope, especially on the west side of the state. But Maine and Wisconsin often get too cold and often would have a freeze that would kill the early blooming apricots.
This is also probably too in southern states. Places like Georgia and South Carolina that grow truckloads peaches, tend to shy away from apricots. They simply bloom too early and the risk of frost is too great.
Then you have states like Florida, which don't always see a frost each year. The issue there is not enough chill hours. Apricot trees need a certain number of hours with temperatures between 32-45°F for the tree to go dormant to be productive than next year.
🏄 California
California is much better suited for growing apricots. Their chance for a frost when the apricots are in bloom is very low. This is why California makes up more than 90% of the commercial apricot crop grown in the U.S.
Most of the other apricots come from Washington with Utah making up less than 1%.
🌲 Oregon
When I went to a farmers market in Oregon on the 7th of June, I was surprised that I was already seeing apricots. I wasn't really thinking about them yet. The window of them being in season was longer than other places that I have personally visited during apricot season.
⛰️ Utah
In 2023, I arrived to Utah in time for apricot season. The farmers market were filled with apricots and for a longer period of time than I had experienced in Michigan.
I got to pick apricots from a neighbor's tree as they had more than they could use. It's not uncommon for people to have an apricot tree or two on their property. Utah is such a great place to grow apricots. It doesn't experience too harsh of winter but plenty of chill hours for the trees. You don't get a last frost like you do in other states that wipes out the crop.
I saw a lot of large sized apricots. I didn't think they would be any good as my experience with large supermarket apricots had been pretty disappointing. But the ones I had in Utah were flavorful, not mealy at all.
🚗 Michigan
My home state is one of those places where apricots are hit or miss. Frost can often reduce if not eliminate the crop. I also have noticed that most of the apricots I have had in Michigan have been on the smaller side. With that said I have had some of the best tasting apricots there. The season is a lot shorter than California or the Pacific Northwest, usually just a few weeks, but it's a sweet one.
👀 What to Look for When Buying Apricots
The idea that bigger is better does not reign true with apricots. I find that the larger ones tend to be less flavorful and more mealy.
Look for small sizes, which can be hard to find.
The more red blush you see on the apricots tells you it was exposed to more sunlight, doesn't necessarily mean it's going to taste better, but often I find these ones to have better flavor.
🏆 Special Varieties to Look Out For
Here are some specific varieties of apricots you need to be looking out for in your local store.
Angelcot Apricots
Frieda's Specialty Produce releases their Angelcots apricots during the month of . I have been able to find them at Whole Foods Market, Trader Joe's and Kroger in past seasons. They are a light-colored apricot with honey sweet flavor. I made some awesome jam with this variety last year.
Velvet Apricots
While not a true apricot, a velvet apricot is technically an aprium (an apricot and plum mix), but you will find them labeled as velvet apricots, are amazingly sweet and flavorful pieces of fruit that you can buy from June to August in different colors. I have gotten these at Whole Foods, Meijer, Grocery Outlet, and Safeway stores in years past.
Red Apricots
Available near the end of May from California, these are flavorful, sweet apricots that have more red blush than any other apricot variety I have come across.
🚜 Where to U-Pick
While apricots are not a popular fruit made available for u-pick (unless you are in Yakima, Washington!), there are some orchards will allow it. Here is our list. Know an orchard missing? Leave us a comment below.
- Weavers Orchard (Morgantown, PA)
- West Valley U-Pick (Yakima, WA)
- All Natural U-Pick (Yakima, WA)
- Johnson Orchards (Yakima, WA)
- Two Sisters U-Pick (Fresno, CA)
- Rennie Orchards (Williamsburg, MI)
- Brian Ranch U-Pick Orchard (Llano, CA)
ℹ️nfographic
Here is a little infographic I made up that is perfect for sharing that will help guide you through apricot season.
Melodie womack
Very very interesting a lot of facts I didn't know about apricots like velvet apricots!! How do you use them? Do you use themlikefor jams and jellies?
Eric Samuelson
Yoou can use the Velvet ones the same way as other apricots. They tend to be sweeter. I have made a good jam with them.
Colleen
Interesting article! I’m in Oregon and this year is the first time my apricot tree has fruit! They are just starting to get color now. It is late in the year so I’m hoping they do ripen and are tasty!
Susan Cowan
Very good article, thank you. I always seem to miss apricot season since moving out of California. I really miss our neighbors apricot trees. I have a question about the "Black Velvet Apricot, (Aprium)" do they taste like an apricot, or more like a plum?? Also, I think I've seen them at the fruit market, but they were labeled as a plum. Could these be "Black Velvets,"??
Eric Samuelson
I am going to say that the plum flavor dominates. It more has the size and shape of an apricot.