ABSTRACT
This chapter provides information on the uses, folk medicine, chemistry, germplasm, distribution, ecology, cultivation, harvesting, yields, energy, and biotic factors of Pistachio. Pistachio is cultivated for the nut, rich in oil, eaten roasted, salted, or used to flavor confections and ice cream. Pistachio is a folk remedy for abdominal ailments, abscess, amenorrhea, bruises, chest ailments, circulation problems, dysentery, dysmenorrhea, gynecopathy, pruritus, sclerosis of the liver, sores, and trauma. Algerians used the powdered root in oil for children's cough. Iranians infused the fruits' outer husk for dysentery. Lebanese used the leaves as compresses, believing the nuts enhanced fertility and virility. Pistachio is reported to tolerate drought, frost, and heat. Many varieties of pistachio have been developed, because the crop has been grown for several thousand years, most are named after the area in which they were cultivated. Pistachio trees are delicate, and production of nuts is influenced by excess of rain, drought, excessive heat or cold and high winds.
