[Continued from Part 1]
The number of beauty products that contain apricot is truly staggering. (Only a few of the multitude of images available are shown; you can find hundreds more by googling "Apricot beauty products images.") I start with pictures of things that I did not know were beautry products: cuticle oil, foot mask, seed serum, toner, and scrub. There is a huge number of apricot scrubs; to deepen my knowledge of this product, I watched a video (see picture below) on using a scrub. I found products called a "body polish" and, wondering if these were for automobiles or humans, I researched them and found that "body scrub" and "body polish" are synonyms; I have not yet discovered what distinguishes them from soap. Following the scrubs are pictures of standard beauty products, e.g., towellettes, perfumes, creams, soaps, deodorants, shampoo, a stick, and others.
The number of beauty products that contain apricot is truly staggering. (Only a few of the multitude of images available are shown; you can find hundreds more by googling "Apricot beauty products images.") I start with pictures of things that I did not know were beautry products: cuticle oil, foot mask, seed serum, toner, and scrub. There is a huge number of apricot scrubs; to deepen my knowledge of this product, I watched a video (see picture below) on using a scrub. I found products called a "body polish" and, wondering if these were for automobiles or humans, I researched them and found that "body scrub" and "body polish" are synonyms; I have not yet discovered what distinguishes them from soap. Following the scrubs are pictures of standard beauty products, e.g., towellettes, perfumes, creams, soaps, deodorants, shampoo, a stick, and others.
Finally there are the food products. Begin with the commercial products. For starters, there is, as usual, jam; The new twist is that this time a jam is combined with an alcoholic beverage. Other products follow.
I close with a collection of homemade apricot products, starting with an apricot smoothie and roasted apricots stuffed with goat cheese.
Apricots don't seem to appeal to mainstream artists, but cartoonists are fond of them.
It is widely recognized that untreated apricot seeds contain cyanide and are poisonous. As one site states, "Just one of the highly toxic apricot seeds provide [sic] sufficient chemicals to cause weakness, shortness of breath, pupil dilation, coma and respiratory failure." The seeds must be properly treated before any use is made of them.
Outsized health benefits are claimed for the pits. The chemical laetrile, sometimes called amygdalin or vitamin B-17 and which is derived from the pits, was seized upon by the health faddists in the 1970s as a revolutionary new cancer drug. Magazines were full of wonder stories about the cures effected by laetrile. Dave Robinson and I had a friend who contracted cancer in the 1970s. Traditional doctors were unable to help him, and he went to a laetrile clinic in Mexico. He said that it was different from all the other hospitals he had been to since it radiated hope rather than despair. This, however, turned out to be false hope as laetrile did him no good, and he soon succumbed.
Once the health cranks get hold of something, however, they never let loose. Numerous sites on the Internet still make outrageous claims for Laetrile. complete with proof from Mexico of its effectiveness. Real doctors cannot reproduce this effectiveness. A review article from 2011 concludes, "This systematic review found that there is no reliable evidence for the alleged effects of laetrile or amygdalin for curative effects in cancer patients." It also says:
The lack of laetrile's effectiveness and the risk of side effects from cyanide poisoning led the Food and Drugs Agency (FDA) in the US and the European Commission to ban its use. However, it is possible to buy laetrile or amygdalin via the internet. As there is no government control of these markets, preparations may not only come from questionable sources but they may also be contaminated. Cancer patients should be informed about the high risk of developing serious adverse effects due to cyanide poisoning after laetrile or amygdalin, especially after oral ingestion.
Your party tip is to bring out the mad scientist in your guests by allowing them to do a graft. Start by showing them the video referenced above, which will teach them that a graft can be done from beginning to end in less than ten minutes. Next, provide them with grafting supplies. Since, as the video shows, rootstocks need only be a foot or so high, you can provide your guests with a diverse selection of rootstocks and scions; this will allow them to mix and match and decide how daring they want to be. Some will be cautious and only pair very closely related rootstocks and scions, while other guests will go for more flamboyant combinations. Caution your guests not to become drunk with power; for example, you can't graft onto an ailanthus rootstock and expect to get apricots. Nevertheless, some striking effects can be achieved.
A guest might want to graft a strain of heirloom tomato that produces desirable fruit onto a hardy, vigorous, disease-resistant tomato rootstock; this can double the yield, as discussed by the University of Nebraska Extension Service. For a more Frankensteinian effect, take advantage of the fact that potatoes and tomatoes are closely related since both are in the genus Solanum., This means that a daredevil guest could graft a tomato scion onto a potato rootstock, and then, as discussed in this article or this video, he or she will have on one plant potatoes underground and tomatoes aboveground. How's that for a bombshell to amaze the neighbors. Your guests could also graft several different scions onto the same rootstock, leading to a Christmas tree effect. By giving your guests this demonstration of practical science, you will deepen their understanding of the natural world and prompt them to delve more deeply into the mysteries of science. Moreover, they will diversify their gardens in ways that will make them the envy of the neighborhood, which in turn can lead to their becoming community leaders. Years later, as your guests are making zoning decisions, they will think back to how that one night at your party had a decisive effect on the course of their lives.
