The Pistachio plant

Have you ever seen a pistachio plant? 😊
From what we have been able to understand over time, there are many who have no idea how it is made and therefore it is a pleasure for us to let you know a part of our reality through photos and information.

The pistachio plant is a medium-sized tree, which rarely exceeds 5 meters, characterized by very twisted branches and a very sticky resin.
The pistachio plant is a dioecious species, meaning there are male and female plants.
It is the wind that carries the pollen of the male plants to the reproductive organs of the flowers of the female plants (anemophilous fertilization).
The female plants at the beginning of summer are therefore loaded with fruits gathered in clusters, which however can only be admired every two years (in even years, in fact, in Bronte there is no harvesting, but only cleaning and pruning operations) .
The fruits consist of an elongated oval-shaped drupe, provided with a thin external husk.
When this bright red hull turns completely white (late August/early September), the pistachios are ripe and ready to harvest.
Inside the drupe we find a single seed with a typical bright green colour, wrapped in a colored film with purplish and greenish tones.
A pistachio plant in full production can produce from 5 to 10 kg of hulled and dry fruit with maximum peaks of 15-20 kg.
After harvesting, the fruits are removed from the hull and placed in the sun to dry for a few days. The shelling takes place after this period and is done mechanically.
Subsequently, the seeds undergo a sorting and any further processing, such as peeling and transformation into preserves and confectionery products.

We hope to have intrigued and interested you.
For any other information on the pistachio world, please contact us and we will be happy to answer you! 😊