After all this talk about pollen tubes, embryos, and freeze damage, I though it would be a good idea to pull it all together.  Below is a picture of two blooms with the petals pulled off and the small almond exposed.  The bloom on the left side, failed to pollinate while the other has pollinated and has begun to make an almond.  It is impossible to say why the bloom did not fertilize but I think it was related to the freeze.  Other possible explanations are that pollen did not find its way to the tube or the tube was closed off by disease and pollen was unable to reach the womb.  Notice the pistil (the large protrusion that looks like an elephant’s trunk) is browning and starting to shrivel.  This happens when the tree stops sending nutrients to the bloom.

Please come back and check out more pictures of the life-cycle of an almond– I will be posting regularly.