Apricorn

The seven Apricorns

Apricorns (Japanese: ぼんぐりのみ Bonguri Fruit) are a special fruit that is native to the Johto region. They appear to be related to Berries, and are encountered only in Pokémon Gold, Silver, Crystal, HeartGold, and SoulSilver, the games that focus on Johto.

The most major difference between Apricorns and Berries is in the use of the fruit. While Berries can be used in and outside battle by a Pokémon to heal on the fly, an Apricorn's outer skin is far too tough for it to be eaten by a Pokémon. Instead, Apricorns are hollowed out by specialists and fitted with special devices to be used to catch Pokémon. One such specialist, Kurt, lives in Azalea Town with his granddaughter, Maisy, who assists him in his work.

The special Poké Balls made from Apricorns are unique, quite rare, and often valuable for a Trainer to have on hand in battle. This is due to the fragile nature of Apricorn trees, which may die if too many Apricorns are picked at once or before they are mature enough. Only one Apricorn may be picked per tree per day, in order to prevent harm to it.

The group of Apricorn trees on Route 37 in Generation IV

In times gone by, the only Poké Balls that existed were made from Apricorns, with the process used to create the Poké Balls being developed sometime between 700 and 400 years before the present day in all Pokémon canons. As they were, at the time, the only Poké Balls, Apricorn Balls were quite common, unlike in modern times, when large companies like Silph Co. and the Devon Corporation develop Poké Balls mechanically and mass-produce them for use by Trainers.

List of Apricorns

Red Apricorn あかぼんぐり Aka Bonguri   APRICORN BOX					INTRODUCED IN GEN II		Cannot be bought Sell for: $100*
Effect: Can be made into a Level Ball by Kurt.					Locations GSC Route 37 HGSS Johto: Routes 37 and 44, Pokéathlon DomeSuMoFr Kanto: Fuchsia City
Secondary effect: If used in the Apriblender, can boost the Power Performance stat.
Description GSC A red Apricorn. HGSS A red Apricorn. It assails your nostrils.

Ylw Apricorn きぼんぐり Ki Bonguri   APRICORN BOX					INTRODUCED IN GEN II		Cannot be bought Sell for: $100*
Effect: Can be made into a Moon Ball by Kurt.					Locations GSC Route 42 HGSS Johto: Routes 42 and 46, Violet City, Pokéathlon DomeTuThFr Kanto: Route 8
Secondary effect: If used in the Apriblender, can boost the Stamina Performance stat.
Description GSC A yellow Apricorn. HGSS A yellow Apricorn. It has an invigorating scent.

Blu Apricorn あおぼんぐり Ao Bonguri   APRICORN BOX					INTRODUCED IN GEN II		Cannot be bought Sell for: $100*
Effect: Can be made into a Lure Ball by Kurt.					Locations GSC Route 37 HGSS Johto: Routes 36, and 37, Pokéathlon DomeSuMoWe Kanto: Route 26, Pewter City
Secondary effect: If used in the Apriblender, can boost the Skill Performance stat.
Description GSC A blue Apricorn. HGSS A blue Apricorn. It smells a bit like grass.

Grn Apricorn みどぼんぐり Mido Bonguri   APRICORN BOX					INTRODUCED IN GEN II		Cannot be bought Sell for: $100*
Effect: Can be made into a Friend Ball by Kurt.					Locations GSC Route 42 HGSS Johto: Routes 29, 30, 35, 39, 42, 45, and 46, Pokéathlon DomeMoFrSa Kanto: Route 11
Secondary effect: If used in the Apriblender, can boost the Jump Performance stat.
Description GSC A green Apricorn. HGSS A green Apricorn. It has a mysterious, aromatic scent.

Pnk Apricorn ももぼんぐり Momo Bonguri   APRICORN BOX					INTRODUCED IN GEN II		Cannot be bought Sell for: $100*
Effect: Can be made into a Love Ball by Kurt.					Locations GSC Route 42 HGSS Johto: Routes 30, 33, and 42, Pokéathlon DomeTuWeTh Kanto: Route 2
Secondary effect: If used in the Apriblender, can boost the Speed Performance stat.
Description GSC A pink Apricorn. HGSS A pink Apricorn. It has a nice, sweet scent.

Wht Apricorn しろぼんぐり Shiro Bonguri   APRICORN BOX					INTRODUCED IN GEN II		Cannot be bought Sell for: $100*
Effect: Can be made into a Fast Ball by Kurt.					Locations GSC Azalea Town HGSS Johto: Route 38, Azalea Town, Pokéathlon DomeTuThSa Kanto: Pewter City
Description GSC A white Apricorn. HGSS A white Apricorn. It doesn't smell like anything.

Blk Apricorn くろぼんぐり Kuro Bonguri   APRICORN BOX					INTRODUCED IN GEN II		Cannot be bought Sell for: $100*
Effect: Can be made into a Heavy Ball by Kurt.					Locations GSC Route 37 HGSS Johto: Routes 31, 33, 37, and 43, Pokéathlon DomeSuWeSa Kanto: Route 1
Description GSC A black Apricorn. HGSS A black Apricorn. It has an indescribable scent.

Differences between generations

The group of Apricorn trees on Route 37 in Generation II

While Apricorns have retained their properties between the five games in which they are available, the most major tweak to them has been their availability. While in all Generation II games, only one of each is available per day, from the Apricorn trees on Routes 37 and 42 and in Azalea Town. In Pokémon Crystal, Kurt is able to make more than one Apricorn Ball per day, if he is given multiple Apricorns of the same color.

The return of Apricorns in Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver solves much of the problem of their availability, with all trees containing the Generation II Berries now having Apricorns growing instead, with some now doubled up, with two trees, rather than one, in some areas. The problem of holding them when they are found is also remedied, as they no longer are placed in the bag's items pocket, but instead in the Apricorn Box, a key item that acts much in the same way that the Berry Pouch did in Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen.

The Apricorn Box

While Apricorns and the Poké Balls that are made from them can be held by a Pokémon in Generation II, this is not allowed in the Generation IV remakes, as these items are not programmed into the other games of that generation. A Pokémon caught in an Apricorn Ball, however, can be traded to the Sinnoh three, where the Ball will appear in battle and on the status screen as a plain Poké Ball.

Apricorns can further be used in Generation IV, a side effect of their increased availability. In this generation, the seven can be mixed together into special drinks for Pokémon with an Apriblender, which improve a Pokémon's performance in the various Pokéathlon competitions. Much like Berries, the color of the Apricorns roughly matches up to their flavor and to the Performance stat that they enhance.

In the anime

File:Apricorn.JPG

A Wht Apricorn in the anime

Apricorns have only appeared once in the anime, in Goin' Apricorn. In this episode, Kurt helped Ash, Misty, and Brock to harvest Apricorns, making Poké Balls from the three Wht Apricorns, two Blu Apricorns, and one Blk Apricorn that were found and giving Brock, Misty, and Ash each a Fast Ball, Brock a Heavy Ball, and Ash and Misty each a Lure Ball for later use.

While Apricorns themselves have not been seen since, all three characters who received one caught a Pokémon each with an Apricorn Ball, with Brock using his Fast Ball on a Pineco, Ash and Misty using their Lure Balls on a Totodile and subsequently fighting over the custody of it, and Misty later using hers alone on a Corsola. Presumably, Ash and Misty still have their unused Fast Balls, and Brock still has his unused Heavy Ball. Another Heavy Ball, likely also made by Kurt, was used in Gulpin it Down, though it was not Brock's.

Trivia

• The word Apricorn may be a combination of "apricot" and "acorn". "Bonguri" may come from the Japanese Chestnut, known as にほんぐり (nihonguri), or from the acorn, どんぐり (donguri).
• A woman in the Azalea Town Pokémon Center mentions that before Poké Balls became standardized, everyone used hollowed-out Apricorns to capture Pokémon. This is likely how Kurt mastered the trade, and a possible origin for the old Poké Ball used by Sammy in Celebi: Voice of the Forest.
• Apricorns have sprites for the Apricorn Case as well as in-bag sprites, indicating that the Apricorn Case may have been a later addition to the game. The in-bag sprites are used in the final game as sprites on the point-exchange menu in the Pokéathlon Dome.
• Grn Apricorns are by far the most common type, while Wht and Red Apricorns are tied for the rarest, appearing in eight and three places, respectively.
• In the anime, possibly as a coloring error, Blk Apricorns were portrayed as being brown-colored.
• Because of the length of the word "Apricorn", only the Red Apricorn is able to have its full color name, with the other six being forced to have abbreviated versions due to an item name's 12-character limit (including spaces). The opposite is true in Japanese, with only the Grn Apricorn unable to have a full color name due to the length of "ぼんぐり", as みど mido is an abbreviated form of みどり midori, green.
• If an Apricorn tree is left bare and on-screen without turning the game off over midnight, the plant will sparkle (in the same way berry plants do when advancing a stage) and an Apricorn will appear on it. If the game was in sleep mode (the Nintendo DS was closed) over midnight, this will happen as soon as the game is taken out of sleep mode.

This item article is part of Project ItemDex, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on all items.