National Cherry Month

 

Since prehistoric times, cherries have been consumed across their range of origin: Europe, North Africa, and Western Asia. In 72 BCE, a Roman general, Lucius Licinius Lucullus, brought the fruit to Rome from Anatolia (Asia Minor/Turkey). According to legend, they were accidentally spread across the Roman Empire as soldiers discarded the pits.


Henry VIII ordered this sweet fruit to be introduced to England. Subsequently, in 1606, they arrived in North America with the New France colony of Port Royal, which today is in Nova Scotia.


US cherry growing began in 1852. Peter Dougherty planted sweet cherry Prunus avium trees on Old Mission Peninsula, Michigan. The climate was ideal; Traverse City, Michigan, is now the unofficial “Cherry Capital of the World.” Today, tart/sour cherries Prunus cerasus are widely grown in this region.


The famous Washington, DC cherry trees were gifted from Japan in 1912. They are ornamental cultivars grown for the beauty of their blossoms, not for edible fruit.


The life of a cherry tree: once planted, it takes three to four years to produce its first fruit crop and seven years to full maturity. The trees usually live 20 to 40 years. However, some can produce fruit for over 60 years. They flourish best in a temperate-latitude climate, and most require 800 or more hours of 45 degrees F (7 degrees C) to break dormancy, blossom, and set fruit.


Sweet and tart cherries rarely cross-pollinate. Most sweet trees need a pollenizer tree; tart cherries are self-fertile. The sweet varieties are generally eaten fresh, while the tart cultivars are used primarily for cooking.


A single cherry tree can be prolific, producing up to 7000 cherries. The chart above outlines the health benefits of cherries.

Do you enjoy cherries? If so, do you have a tree? If you reside in a temperate region, consider planting one this spring. Dwarf varieties, of only eight to ten feet tall, are an option for little lots. I have a Juliet cherry bush in my yard.

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