Cakes, pastries, ice-creams, and milkshakes are all delicious, but they’re even better and more memorable when topped with a cherry.
Cherries are fleshy drupe fruit that belongs to the Rosaceae family and the genus Prunus. The sweet cherry, sour cherry, and duke, a cross between the sweet and sour cherries, are the only commercially harvested edible cherries.
Origin of Cherries
For generations, cherries have delighted the palates of food connoisseurs. They earned a place on the tables of Roman conquerors, Greek citizens, and Chinese noblemen thanks to their ruby-red color and tart flavor. In the 1600s, early settlers introduced cherries to America via ship.
Later, French colonists from Normandy carried pits to the Great Lakes region, where they were planted along the Saint Lawrence River. French pioneers planted cherry trees in their gardens when they created cities like Detroit, Vincennes, and other Midwestern colonies.
Large-scale Cherry production began in the mid-nineteenth century. Peter Dougherty lived in northern Michigan as a Presbyterian missionary. He planted cherry trees on the Old Mission Peninsula in 1852
Dougherty’s cherry trees grew, much to the amazement of the other farmers and Indians in the region, and other people of the area quickly planted trees. Because Lake Michigan tempers Arctic winds in the winter and cools the orchards in the summer, the site proved to be ideal for cultivating cherry.
Because sour cherries are easier to grow, the United States now produces them more than sweet cherries. Simply put, they are less picky and are less impacted by harsh weather. As a result, they multiply in number.
Cherry growers can now choose from a selection of cherry varieties that are best suited to their land and climate. In addition, new cultivated varieties of sweet and sour cherries are being developed that are harder than previous kinds, and German cultivars are proving to be highly successful in this country.
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Species of Cherries
There are roughly 150 different types of cherries. The sweet cherry and the sour cherry are the two most important species in terms of fruit production. They’re thought to be of ancient origin, possibly from Armenia or the Black and Caspian.
Sweet cherries are the most commonly eaten cherries. A wild cherry was used to create the sweet cherry. Wild cherry stones have been discovered in deposits in Bronze Age towns all over Europe, notably in the United Kingdom.
The sweet cherry bears solid, heart-shaped fruit that can be eaten raw or cooked. Some of the popular varieties of sweet cherry include:
It was named after horticulture Seth Lewelling and Chinese foreman Ah Bing, who grafted a dark-red sweet cherry descendant of the Black Republican cherry. Bing cherries are huge, heart-shaped fruits with a deep red color and a smooth, shining surface.
The flesh of Bing Cherries is firm but delectable, with a sweet and tart flavor. When it comes to flavor and texture, the Bing Cherry is unrivaled. This cherry is accessible from mid-spring through mid-summer,
The golden colors, pink blush skin, and high sugar levels distinguish this blush sweet cherry from other cherry fruits. Harold Fogle created it in 1952 at Washington State University by crossing Bing and Van red cherries and naming it after Mount Rainier, a huge stratovolcano in Washington State. Rainier cherries, sometimes known as “white cherries,” are sweet, low in acid, and have a caramel-like flavor. These cherries are available from May to early August.
The Prosser Research Center at Washington State University created this cherry. Benton cherries are larger than Bing cherries and have a dark red color. The fruit is huge, firm, and tastes great. In addition, as compared to Bing cherries, it has a lower proclivity for cracking. This cherry variety is self-fertile.
The sour cherry is related to the wild cherry, but its fruit is more acidic, making it particularly suited for cooking and jam production. The tree is smaller than the wild cherry, growing up to 4-10m tall with twiggy branches and shorter stalks bearing the crimson to black fruit. Compared to sweet cherry cultivars, the fruit is smaller, softer, and more globular.
In human civilization, the sour cherry has a long history. Cultivated sour cherries were first discovered in 300 B.C.E. in the Caspian and Black Seas. Persians and Romans were well-liked, and they brought them to Britain well before the 1st century AD. Henry VIII popularized their cultivation in the sixteenth century in the United Kingdom. They became a popular crop among Kentish farmers, and by 1640, there were more than two dozen named cultivars. When the Massachusetts colonists arrived in the Americas, they planted the first sour cherry, ‘Kentish Red.’
Other Species of Cherries
Despite having edible fruit, the other species are not widely farmed for human consumption, with the exception of Northern locations where the two main species will not grow. Some, like the black cherry, are prized for their ability to produce exquisite furniture, while others, like the Japanese cherry, are prized as attractive trees.
Cherries have a rich history, and they are loved by the people of the United States. They offer numerous benefits and can be eaten fresh or cooked in desserts.