Features Fruit Production
Cornell & IPM release two new processing cherry varieties

The cherry processing industry now
has two new varieties to work with thanks to recent releases by Cornell
University’s New York State Agricultural Experiment Station (NYSAES),
and International Plant Management, Inc.

The cherry processing industry now has two new varieties to work with thanks to recent releases by Cornell University’s New York State Agricultural Experiment Station (NYSAES), and International Plant Management, Inc.

“These two brining cherry releases provide growers with new well-adapted varieties for the Eastern United States,” says Susan Brown, professor of horticultural sciences, who leads Cornell’s cherry breeding program.

Andersen is a large, stem-on cocktail cherry with long, thick, green stems that tends to bear in singles. It is very well suited for stem-on shaker harvest with an Ethephon treatment. It has good tree hardiness and health and is bacterial canker resistant. The cherry is large with a bright pink blush while the flesh is white. The fruit is very acid and not suited for retail sales.

Andersen was developed at the NYSAES as part of the station’s ongoing breeding program. It was bred and tested as NY 9295. Andersen was named in honour of Robert Andersen, professor emeritus at Cornell, who was the cherry breeder at NYSAES until his retirement last year.

“We have harvested Andersen with a trunk shaker for a number of years now,” reports Jim Bittner of Singer Farms, located near Appleton, New York. “Even with a treatment of Ethephon, most cherries come off the tree with the stem. This year (2006) it was 100 per cent with stems. I have never seen a cherry that shakes so easily but still has the stem attached to the cherry.”

Nugent is the second variety released. It is a completely yellow cherry that ripens at the same time as Gold and is a pollenizer for other mid-early blooming varieties. It has better crack resistance than Gold and is pollinated by other brining varieties, but not Gold. The average fruit weight is eight grams and soluble solids are 20 per cent. The tree is spreading and bears very heavily. Nugent was selected from seedlings from Amy Lezzoni’s program at Michigan State and was tested at the NYSAES as NY 518.

Nugent was named in honour of Jim Nugent, co-ordinator of the Northwest Michigan Horticultural Research Station, Traverse City, Michigan. Nugent was named Cherry Person of the Year in 2006 and retired at the end of 2006.

“These varieties also serve as excellent pollenizers,” says Brown.

“Trials in Michigan generated interest in these selections due to their uniqueness and the suitability of NY 9295 for stem-on maraschino cherry production,” she adds.
For further information or availability of these varieties, please contact International Plant Management at 1-800-424-2765.