tApricot (Prunus armeniaca L.) is one of the most important stone fruits grown in the world, basicallydue to its good taste and multi uses. In many areas of world and also Iran, apricot production is limitedby spring frosts that can damage the sensitive non-dormant tissues. The current study was conductedwithin a seedling population of apricot to select superior genotypes in term of consistent late-floweringdate and high fruit quality. In the first step, the pre-selection was carried out according to flowering dateamong 894 genotypes. As a result of pre-selection, 73 trees were late-flowering. Then, the selected 73late-flowering trees were further evaluated according to vegetative and fruit characteristics. The variationwas observed for traits related to fruit. Variability found in fruit weight was between 33.01 and 66.01 g,in fruit flesh weight between 31.45–62.43 g, and in total soluble solid (TSS) between 15.00–23.00%. Fruitdimensions and weight were in significant positive correlation with each other. Cluster and principalcomponent analyses confirmed considerable diversity in the studied germplasm. All of the studied 73 late-flowering genotypes could be useful as a parent to improve flowering season of cultivars. Furthermore,among them, nine genotypes including Gharekahriz-69, Gharekahriz-65, Gharekahriz-13, Gharekahriz-47, Gharekahriz-59, Gharekahriz-34, Gharekahriz-17, Gharekahriz-58 and Gharekahriz-38 were superiorin terms of consistent high fruit quality and can be singled out for cultivation.
