Almonds grow in shrub or tree form and reach a height of three to eight meters. Their pink flowers can appear as early as the end of January - but there must be no frost by then. In midsummer, the velvety-haired fruits ripen, their usually rock-hard kernel protecting the seed - the actual almond. It takes a lot of strength to get to the almond; only in the case of the so-called cracked almonds can the kernel be cracked relatively easily and the hammer can remain in the drawer.

The almond tree has been cultivated for 4,000 years, making it one of the oldest cultivated fruit species. Originally from southwest Asia, it conquered the Mediterranean region via Asia Minor and Egypt in two varieties - sweet almonds and bitter almonds. The main growing areas for sweet almonds are California, which supplies half of the world's demand, and Spain and Italy. Spanish almonds tend to be less irrigated than California's and are more intense in flavor. In Germany, almond trees thrive only in areas where wine can also be grown.

Bitter almonds contain up to eight percent amygdalin, a toxic bitter substance that releases prussic acid in the body. Sweet almonds, which contain only insignificant amounts of amygdalin and are edible without restriction, were cultivated early on. The mildly fragrant almond oil, about 55 percent of which is contained in almonds, is used for cosmetic purposes. Bitter almonds are also grown in plantations. The bitter almond oil obtained from them is chemically processed, amygdalin is removed and it is used for flavoring (for example in amaretto and marzipan) and as an ingredient in perfumes.