How to grow Sweet cherry

Prunus avium · wild cherry, gean, mazzard

The sweet cherry is the tree behind most eating cherries; wild trees reach 5–25 m, while garden trees are kept small on dwarfing rootstocks. White blossom opens in early spring with the leaves and is at risk from late frost. Many varieties need a pollination partner, though a growing number are self-fertile.

Quick facts

Type	Fruit tree
Family	Rosaceae
Light	Full sun
Soil pH	6.5–6.7
Frost	tolerates light frost
Sowing to harvest	1460 days
Where it grows	Open ground

When to plant

Planted as a young plant from a nursery while it is dormant — in early spring before the buds open, or in autumn after leaf fall.

Harvest from June to July (northern hemisphere).

Care

Open ground

Stage	Watering	Temperature	Feeding
Growth	every 7 days	—	organic, at the start of the stage
Flowering	every 7 days	—	—
Fruiting	every 7 days	—	—
Harvest	—	—	—
Winter rest	—	—	—

Growing notes

Light

A warm, sunny, sheltered spot, such as a south- or south-west-facing wall.

Soil

Deep, fertile, well-drained soil that is slightly acidic, ideally pH 6.5–6.7; poor on shallow or sandy ground.

Care

Water a young tree once a week in dry spells, but not while the fruit ripens, as rain or watering then splits the skins. Mulch each spring with compost and feed only after a good crop. Prune right after harvest, in late July or August; fruiting spurs last 10–12 years, so mature trees need little cutting. Net small trees against birds and pick only fully ripe cherries, as they do not ripen after picking.

How to tell it is ripe

The fruit has reached full size for its variety.
The skin is evenly coloured all over in the variety's ripe shade, bright red to dark purple in most.
Taste one: it has the full, sweet flavour of its variety.
Pick in dry weather before heavy rain, holding the stalk rather than the fruit, and leave the stalks on cherries you want to store.

Pests and diseases of Sweet cherry

Sources

Figures checked against these sources.