Cherry (sweet and tart)

Prunus avium (sweet cherry) and Prunus cerasus (tart, sour or pie cherry) · Rose family (Rosaceae)

At a glance
Hardiness zones	3 to 9
Sun	full sun
Water	moderate
Life cycle	perennial
Frost	Hardy: takes frost
Soil pH	6.0–7.0
Spacing	144 to 300 inches

About Cherry (sweet and tart)

Tart cherries are compact, cold-hardy, self-fruitful trees, a good fit for small yards; they are mostly used for pies and jams. Sweet cherries are bigger trees for fresh eating that usually need a pollination partner and crack in rainy weather at ripening.

Tart cherries suit zones 4-8 and sweet cherries zones 5-9 (Penn State), and the hardiest tart varieties rate good in zone 3 (University of Minnesota). Most sweet cherries need 600-900 chill hours below 45 F (UC Master Gardeners of Marin).

When to plant

Timing is counted from your average last spring frost (and first fall frost). Sow & Tell works out the actual dates for your ZIP code.

Set out plants: up to 4 weeks before the last frost

Plant a 1-year-old tree in early to mid-spring as soon as the soil can be worked, with the bud union 1-2 inches above ground (Penn State). Tart cherries start bearing in 3 to 5 years and sweet cherries in 4 to 7 (Penn State); dwarf tart trees stay 8-15 feet tall (University of Minnesota).

Soil

Deep, well-drained loam with excellent air circulation; avoid very sandy, heavy or wet soils.

Aim for a pH of 6.0 to 7.0 in well-drained soil, and clear perennial weeds before planting.

Feeding

Each spring (May in New England) from the second year on, only if growth is weak (tart cherries often bear in 3-5 years, sweet cherries in 4-7): balanced fertilizer such as 10-10-10, or compost. About 1/2 lb of 10-10-10 for young trees and 1 lb for bearing trees, spread from the drip line to about 16 inches from the trunk; follow a soil test.

Never fertilize a tree that is already growing well, and do not feed in late summer or early fall, which raises the risk of frost cracks.

Harvest

Cherries ripen from May through July depending on climate and variety; pick them with the stems attached (UC Master Gardeners of Marin). Birds find ripe cherries quickly (UNH, Penn State). Pick sweet cherries promptly, since they crack with heavy rain as they ripen (University of Maryland).

Cherries give one crop a year, and each tree's harvest season is short. Pick them ripe from the tree, since they don't ripen further after picking.

Varieties (32)

Variety	Type	Notes
Bing	Sweet cherry	Very large, sweet, juicy fruit; dark burgundy skin that looks almost black when ripe. The commercial standard.
Black Tartarian	Sweet cherry	Small to medium, purplish-black, soft and juicy. An older variety, mostly planted now as a pollinizer.
BlackGold	Sweet cherry	Dark sweet cherry. Blooms late and has some frost tolerance.
Cavalier	Sweet cherry	Black fruit with firm, dark red flesh and good flavor. Resistant to cracking.
Chelan	Sweet cherry	Large, firm, round fruit with dark mahogany skin; juicy red flesh. Vigorous, upright tree.
Hartland	Sweet cherry	Round purple fruit with good flavor. Productive, but fairly prone to cracking.
Hedelfingen	Sweet cherry	Black, firm, high-quality fruit. More crack-resistant than most. Good fresh, frozen or processed.
Hudson	Sweet cherry	Sweet, very firm, dark red fruit. Very resistant to cracking. Blooms late; vigorous.
Kristin	Sweet cherry	Large, firm, sweet, aromatic dark red fruit. Vigorous and productive. Moderately crack-resistant.
Lambert	Sweet cherry	Very large, heart-shaped, black fruit with dark, sweet flesh. Hardy, vigorous tree.
Lapins	Sweet cherry	Very large, dark purple to black fruit with firm, sweet flesh. Heavy cropper; upright tree. Somewhat resistant to cracking.
Stella	Sweet cherry	Large, heart-shaped, nearly black fruit; sweet, firm, dark red flesh. Bears young. Sources differ on cracking: Virginia Tech and Nebraska call it prone; Utah State calls it resistant.
Sweetheart	Sweet cherry	Large, very firm, dark red fruit with very good flavor. Upright, vigorous, heavy-bearing tree. Moderately prone to cracking.
Ulster	Sweet cherry	Large, sweet, crisp dark red fruit. Moderately crack-resistant.
Utah Giant	Sweet cherry	Larger and sweeter than Bing; dark red flesh keeps its color when processed. Disease resistant.
Van	Sweet cherry	Medium-large, nearly black fruit with firm, semi-sweet flesh. Hardy, vigorous and productive.
Emperor Francis	Sweet cherry (light-colored)	Large yellowish-white fruit with a red blush. Not very crack-resistant.
Gold	Sweet cherry (light-colored)	Small bright yellow fruit, often used for brining. Fairly resistant to cracking and to bacterial canker. Nebraska calls Yellow Glass/Gold the hardiest sweet cherry.
Rainier	Sweet cherry (light-colored)	Large, firm, golden fruit with a red blush; sweeter and less acidic than Bing. Vigorous, hardy and productive. Cracking reports vary by region.
Royal Ann	Sweet cherry (light-colored)	Crisp, sweet-tart fruit; golden skin with a red blush. Resists cracking. Good fresh, canned or preserved.
WhiteGold	Sweet cherry (light-colored)	Large yellow fruit with a red blush. Very hardy tree.
Minnie Royal	Sweet cherry (low-chill)	One of two low-chill sweet cherries listed for Texas.
Royal Lee	Sweet cherry (low-chill)	One of two low-chill sweet cherries listed for Texas.
Balaton	Tart (sour) cherry	Larger, firmer, sweeter and redder than Montmorency, with juicy flesh.
Danube	Tart (sour) cherry	Dark red, medium to large, and sweeter than most tart cherries.
Evans (Bali)	Tart (sour) cherry	Large, bright red fruit that sweetens if left on the tree; small pits. Extremely cold-hardy.
Mesabi	Tart (sour) cherry	A bit sweeter than most tart cherries; bright red skin, pale red flesh.
Meteor	Tart (sour) cherry	Bright red, tart, semi-firm fruit with clear juice. Extra-hardy natural dwarf, 10-12 ft. Blooms later than most. Some leaf spot resistance.
Montmorency	Tart (sour) cherry	Bright red, firm fruit with clear juice; the classic pie cherry. Very cold-hardy. Less prone to cracking than sweet cherries.
North Star	Tart (sour) cherry	Dark red skin and red flesh with mahogany juice. Natural dwarf, about 6-10 ft, so it is easy to net. Some resistance to leaf spot and brown rot. University of Minnesota release (1950).
Suda	Tart (sour) cherry	Deep red with the darkest juice of the tart cherries. Great for processing and freezing. Harder to find than other tart cherries.
Surefire	Tart (sour) cherry	Bright red, firm and very tart. Blooms late, so it is less likely to lose its crop to spring frost. Cold-hardy.

Pests to watch for

Cherry fruit fly, Plum curculio, Spotted wing drosophila, Peachtree borer, Birds, Pocket gophers, Sawflies (garden sawflies), Boxelder bugs, Spongy moth (formerly gypsy moth), Periodical cicadas, Obliquebanded leafroller, Pear sawfly (pearslug, cherry slug), European red mite, Apple maggot, Scale insects, Strawberry sap beetle, Spotted lanternfly, Rose chafer, Eastern tent caterpillar, Fall webworm, Winter moth, Cankerworms (fall and spring cankerworms)

Diseases and problems

Brown rot, Black knot, Bacterial canker, Powdery mildew, Fruit cracking, Root and crown rot, Winter injury, Mechanical damage (mower, trimmer and tie wounds), Crown gall, Sunscald, Armillaria root rot

In the kitchen

Sweet cherries are eaten fresh or cooked; tart cherries are usually cooked into pies, jams and sauces (Penn State).

Keeping it: Refrigerate cherries in a shallow container and use them within 3-5 days; wash them just before eating.

Safety: Stems, leaves and seeds contain cyanide-forming compounds (ASPCA), so do not crush or eat the pits.

Pets: Toxic to dogs, cats and horses (ASPCA): stems, leaves and seeds contain cyanogenic glycosides, especially as leaves wilt; signs include brick-red gums, dilated pupils, trouble breathing, panting and shock

Sources

Photo: Photo: Peggy Greb, USDA ARS, Public domain (USDA ARS), via Wikimedia Commons. Photo resized for the web.

Planting dates and advice are general guidance; check with your local Cooperative Extension office for your area.