The CHERRY BEST
They look and taste fabulous – and modern trees are right for just about any garden
WHEN we lived in East London, there was always a moment in mid-summer when I felt a craving for fresh cherries. Packing the family into the car, I would make the short journey down the A2 into rural Kent, where numerous roadside stalls have long tempted travellers with boxes of glossy red fruit picked at local orchards.
The cherries grown in this county are sweet, juicy – and generally taken from trees when perfectly ripe. We would tuck into them immediately, and very few ever made it home. As far as I’m concerned, they are a culinary delight that knocks the spots off supermarket cherries flown in from overseas.
If you get the chance to visit the so-called ‘garden of England’ in cherry season, take it. Alternatively, plant your own cherry tree this autumn – and hang up the car keys. Most will produce a good crop in four years, but should reward you with a light flush of fruit within a couple.
In the past, raising cherries was something that only those with orchards or very large gardens could experience, because many varieties required another variety nearby to help with pollination. These days, varieties tend to be self-fertile, so they do not need a pollinating partner.
Old-fashioned cherry trees also used to reach huge proportions, but the introduction of modern rootstocks, such as Gisela 5, restricts the height of the tree to about 6ft when fully grown. This allows plants to be trained against vertical supports, or to be grown as specimens in open ground.
Cherries belong to a large family of fruit and nut trees that includes plums, apricots, peaches and almonds. Domestic varieties have been developed from wild trees that were native to Asia Minor.
Historians believe cherries were introduced to Britain by Roman settlers in the 1st Century AD. The art of cultivating the fruit was lost during the Dark Ages and it wasn’t until the 16th Century that they returned in a big way, after Henry VIII ordered 100 acres of them to be planted in Kent.
Today, well over 200 varieties of cherry tree are available in Britain, with fruit that ranges from yellow to near black, although most come in a shade of red. Those with pale skin that’s flushed with red, giving a two-tone effect, are particularly attractive.
Nurserymen split varieties into two main groups, based on the flavour of their fruit. Sweet cherries generally ripen during June and July and can be eaten fresh, while acid cherries are ready from late summer into early autumn. These have a tart flavour, so are best for cooking or jam.
There are some cracking sweet cherry varieties. ‘Sunburst’ has extremely dark fruit in late July, while ‘Sweetheart’ boasts bright red fruit that ripen over a long period to allow picking across several weeks. Introduced in the early 1970s, dark red ‘Stella’ is probably our best-known cherry. All are self-fertile.
Commonly known as Kentish cherry because
it was once so widely planted in the county, ‘Early Rivers’ was actually bred in Hertfordshire by Rivers Nurseries in 1872. Its fruit are one of the first to ripen, allowing picking from early June in the South of England.
A drawback with ‘Early Rivers’ and several other heritage types is that they are self-sterile, meaning they need a partner of a different variety planted nearby to ensure successful pollination. Specialist fruit tree nurseries will be able to suggest which are compatible.
NOBODY really knows the origins of ‘Morello’, the world’s most famous sour cherry, which has graced British gardens since the early 17th Century. Few bother with other varieties due to Morello’s large, dark red fruit that make delicious jams and pies, but ‘Nabella’, ‘Albalu’ and ‘Montmorency’ are all pretty good too. Sweet cherries are best in a sunny, sheltered spot with well-drained, deep, loamy soil. Acid cherries will tolerate a bit more shade, making them ideal for training against a north-facing wall. Avoid frost pockets, as flowers appear early and are vulnerable to a cold snap.
Container-grown cherry trees are on sale all year, while bare-root specimens are available from October to March. Both types are usually sold as one-year-old trees with branches, known as feathered maidens.
They are commonly grown as bushes, pyramid-shaped trees or open-centred, goblet-shaped trees in the ground. Those who are strapped for space can fan-train trees on a series of wires attached to a wall or fence, or even raise them in large containers.
For a good range of cherry trees, try Keepers Nursery (keepers-nursery.co.uk), Orange Pippin Fruit Trees (orangepippin trees.co.uk) and Pomona Fruit (pomonafruits.co.uk).