SITUATIONS FOR THE CHERRY 



259 



Delayed Fruiting of Cherry Trees. Though the cherry in fav- 

 orable situations bears early, the grower, especially on strong, rich 

 lands, will often have many years of disappointment from falling 

 blossoms and fruit. During this time the trees will be making 

 marvelous wood growth, and this apparently suppresses the fruit- 

 ing function. Usually these trees will ultimately bear when their 

 exuberant growth declines. They can be thrown into fruit sooner 

 by allowing the trees to go uncultivated or by root pruning, 

 digging a trench around about eight feet from the tree, and sever- 

 ing the roots thus encountered, or by summer pruning of twig 

 ends. Because of this overgrowth, growers give such soil to the 

 apple or the pear rather than the cherry. Sometimes the non- 

 bearing of the cherry is inexplicable. Though everything seems 

 to be right, and the blooms are profuse, the fruit will not stick. 



Unquestionably lack of bearing is due with certain cherries to 

 lack of association of different varieties and cross fertilization. 

 There is warrant for the claim that keeping bees in the vicinity 

 of cherry orchards has increased the bearing. But varieties must 

 be provided which will act as cross-pollinizers. The Royal Ann 

 needs this assistance and will bear better when associated with 

 Black Tartarian, Black Bigarreau, Bing and probably others. In 

 Oregon the Deacon and Lambert are said to be good pollinizers 

 for Royal Ann. 



EXPOSURES FOR THE CHERRY 



Exposures for the cherry are chosen both with reference to 

 protection from frost injury and to early ripening of the fruit. The 

 cherry blooms early; though hardly as venturesome as the apricot 

 and almond. In protected situations, guarded from cold north- 

 erly winds, and open to sunshine on the south and southeast, the 

 fruit advances to maturity very rapidly. In Vaca Valley about 

 a month of good weather after the blossoming will ripen an early 

 cherry, and ripe cherries have been shipped as early as march 31. 

 The pioneer cherry growers of Vaca Valley went there from their 

 old homes in Napa Valley, because they could gather and 

 market cherries in their new locations before the same varieties 

 were ripe in Napa. They chose places protected on the north and 

 west by steep hills. The two things to secure are, apparently, 

 protection from the sweep of cold winds and elevation above the 

 deposits of cold air, which occurs in depressed places. 



In localities where fruit ripens late, as near the coast, there is 

 no need to seek forcing conditions, for the extra early varieties 

 should not be planted except for family use. Early varieties are 

 comparatively poor in quality, and will not sell profitably, as they 



