Apricots flower early in the spring
and so while being an easy fruit to grow in warmer regions, it needs to
be fan-trained against a south facing sunny wall or under glass in
cooler parts. Apricots are fairly reliably self-fertile, but will
benefit in cooler climates from hand pollination using a feather or soft
brush.
Apricots fruit on wood that is two
years or older, so allow for this when pruning - don't prune too
drastically in one go. In warm climates, they usually crop heavily and
thinning of the fruits will often be necessary.
If an apricot tree doesn't thrive,
then it is most likely due to where it is positioned, a result of
temperature or sunlight rather than anything else. You may get
die-back from the tips of branches, but while this can be pruned out,
won't address the root cause of the problem.
