How to Plant Cherry Seeds – Planting Cherry trees from seeds in your garden can be fun. They may not bear any fruits for at least 3 years after planting. However, they can make your garden shadier and more beautiful.

Cherry trees will not only give you fruits. The wood of this tree can also be used to create furniture. Moreover, their flowers can make your garden more attractive. If you want to get all those benefits, you must know how to plant cherry seeds.

All About Cherries You Must Know

Cherries that we found in markets are mostly sweet cherries (Prunus avium) and sour cherries (Prunus cerasus).

There are other species from the genus Prunus. But, some of them don’t have edible fruits. Cherry trees are originally from Western Asia and Europe.

They grow in temperate latitudes or USDA plant hardiness zones 5 to 9. Therefore, if you live in those areas, you must know how to plant cherry seeds to plant them.

However, before you find out about how to plant cherry seeds, you must know some facts about cherries.

If you know these facts, you will understand more about planting and caring for this fruit tree. These are several things you must know about cherries.

Learn also: how to plant apple seeds.

1. Cherry fruits

Cherry fruits are categorized as stone fruits. They are fleshy with a pit in the middle. These round heart-shaped fruits are varied in color.

Some of them are red and others are nearly black or even yellow.

They are relatively expensive due to their propensity to damage and the cost of cultivation. However, the demand for cherries is pretty high.

There are several reasons why many people love cherries. One of them is the taste of it. This delicious fruit can be eaten fresh or used in cooking.

Besides, many people believe that cherries can relieve certain conditions.

2. Uses 

Sweet cherries are usually eaten fresh. Meanwhile, sour cherries are usually used in cooking, such as cherry pies, sauces, jelly, and pastries.

The sweet ones are usually sold fresh. But, the sour ones are usually sold frozen, dried, or canned. Before they are processed, their pits are removed.

Therefore, you may find a bit of difficulty in planting them from seeds.

3. Nutritional Value

Different kinds of cherries have different nutrition. Raw sweet cherries are high in vitamin C, B6, and potassium. Meanwhile, raw sour cherries are high in vitamin C, A, beta carotene, potassium, and manganese.

Both of them offer a moderate amount of dietary fiber and a small amount of vitamin B1, B2, B3, B5, K, iron, phosphorus, and magnesium. Moreover, these fruits also contain some antioxidants.

4. Benefits

Taking a portion of cherries, about 14 cherries, per day will give you some health benefits. Therefore, if your cherry trees are fruiting, you can obtain those benefits readily and easily. These are some health benefits that you will get from this fruit.

• Reduce Inflammation

The antioxidants found in cherries, cyanidin, and anthocyanins, can relieve inflammation. Therefore, if you suffer from arthritis or swelling, you need to eat more cherries. As a result, you will be free from painful arthritis and be able to reduce your swelling quicker.

• Control Blood Pressure

The potassium in cherries will make your blood vessels more relaxed. Moreover, the polyphenol in this fruit will lower your blood pressure. Therefore, cherries are good for people with high blood pressure.

With more controlled blood pressure and more relaxed blood vessels, you will have a lower risk of strokes and heart attacks. To get this benefit, you must take cherry juice regularly.

• Improve Sleep

Cherries are also high in melatonin. This phytochemical will help you regulate your sleep cycle. Therefore, you will be able to fall asleep easier at night. Besides, it will also improve your sleep quality. If you want to obtain this benefit, you must drink sour cherry juice regularly.

• Boost Your Immune System

Taking cherries regularly will help you get enough vitamin C. Moreover, cherries contain various antioxidant properties. As a result, drinking this fruit juice or eating this fruit will boost your immune system. Therefore, you will not get sick easily. Moreover, those properties will also protect your cells from damage that is caused by oxidants.

5. Cultivation 

Cherry trees cannot live in tropical areas. It is because they need chilling hours per year to break dormancy, produce flowers, and fruits. They are cultivated in different countries.

Some of the leading cherry producing countries are Turkey, United States, Russia, and Iran. In Northern Hemisphere, cherries are in season in the summer. But, in Southern Hemisphere, they are in season in December. 

These trees are susceptible to various diseases and pests. Therefore, if you want to plant this tree from seeds, you must not only know how to plant cherry seeds but also how to care for them.

The caring process of cherry trees can be a bit complicated, especially in winter. However, it is something that is not impossible to do.

The pollination system is different between sweet cherries and sour cherries. Sweet cherry trees require cross-pollination.

As a result, you need to plant two or three cherry trees if you want to harvest this fruit eventually. However, sour cherry trees are self-pollinated. Therefore, they do not require a company. 

Besides, sweet cherry trees can grow tall and large. They can reach 11 meters high. Meanwhile, sour cherry trees are relatively smaller.

Their height is usually less than 5 meters. However, to have an easier harvest, botanists have created dwarf cherry trees which height is 3 meters or less.

Harvesting this fruit must be done carefully. Cherries are fleshy and juicy. Therefore, they are prone to damage. To avoid it, many farmers choose to handpick them. Another method to harvest this fruit is by a mechanized shaker.

Cherry trees that grow in the orchard usually start producing fruits in year 3 or 4. But, if you grow them from seeds, you may need to wait for 7 years for the trees to mature.

6. Varieties 

Several cherry varieties are commercially cultivated in the USA. They have their unique characteristics. Therefore, before you start the process of how to plant cherry seeds, you need to remember what variety of cherry that you plant. These are some cherry varieties that you found in this country.

• Rainier Cherries

This sweet cherry fruit has yellow with red blush color. Its flesh is yellow and thick. This big size cherry is delicious and usually eaten fresh. However, it is also great for cooking.

This cherry tree has fragrant pink-white blooms. You will see this tree blooming with flowers in spring. Later on, you can harvest the fruits between May and June.

However, you may need to wait for 3 to 5 years to see this tree producing fruit. To ensure that this cherry tree is fruitful, you need a Bing, Stella, Montmorency, or Black Tartarian cherry tree.

• Bing Cherries

This particular variety is sweet and red. However, they are not as sweet as Rainier cherries. This popular cherry variety is pretty big.

Its tree has fragrant and beautiful white blooms in spring. If you want to grow this cherry tree, you need to have a bird net so that your harvest won’t be damaged by birds.

Bing cherry trees need another cherry tree to pollinate. Some cherry tree varieties that are compatible with this tree are Rainier, Montmorency, Stella, or Black Tartarian.

• Queen Anne Cherries

At a glance, Queen Anne cherries look almost similar to Rainier cherries. However, they have a touch of sour taste. The combination of sweet and sour make this fruit is perfect for cooking and juice.

To make this tree yield fruits, you need another cherry tree. It is compatible with Rainier, black Tartarian, Stella, or Montmorency cherry tree.

• Morello Cherries

This dark-colored cherry fruit is sour. Therefore, it is best for pie, sauce, jelly, and juice. Morello cherry trees don’t need the company to pollinate. It is because they are self-fertile.

• Montmorency Cherries

This fruit is red but sour They are best for cooking. However, you can also use them to make cherry juice. Montmorency cherry tree is self-fertile. Therefore, you don’t need to plant another cherry tree in your garden.

How to Plant Cherry Seeds

Planting cherry seeds in your garden can be fun. If you have cherry trees, you will be able to see them blooming with white or pink flowers in spring.

If you want to see this beauty, you must know how to plant cherry seeds. Planting those seeds may seem like a gamble. It is because they may yield different fruits from their parents. But, it is part of the fun.

Cherry trees are best planted in late fall or early spring. Therefore, you need to start the process several months before the best planting time.

These are the steps of how to plant cherry seeds.

1. Germinating the Seeds

Germinating cherry seeds is not easy, especially if you take the seeds from cherries that you buy from the grocers.

If you want to have more chances of success in germinating them, you had better buy your cherries from the farmers market.

Another alternative is buying cherry seeds from local nursery. If you prefer the former, you can follow these steps. 

• Collects your cherry seeds and put them in a cup of warm water.
• Leave the seeds for five minutes and then clean them from the fruit flesh.
• Put the clean seeds on a paper towel. Let them dry for five days in a warm area.
• After that, put the seeds in plastic containers that have been filled with vermiculite.
• Put them on the fridge for 10 weeks. Don’t forget to give a cherry variety label on the container.
• Check the seeds periodically and make sure that the vermiculite is moist.
• After the ten weeks have passed, remove the seeds from the containers.

2. Planting the seeds

Next, you can plant those seeds in pots. Fill the pots with seed starting mix and mist the medium. After that, you can plant two or three seeds in each pot. Next, you must put the pots in an indoor but sunny area.

Eventually, the seeds will sprout roots and grow. After they grow into a young plant or reach 12 inches in height, you can transplant them to the ground in early spring.

3. Transplanting

The next step of the planting is the transplanting process. The area you choose to plant your cherry trees must be well-drained and have full sun. Besides, you need to add enough fertilizer and mulch the area.

When you are transplanting them, you must give 30 feet spacing between trees.

4. Caring 

Caring for cherry trees must be done properly. You need to water it when the weather is hot or dry. Most of the time, you only need to water it once a week or every two weeks. However, when the trees start producing fruits, you need to keep the soil moist so that fruits are juicy.

Besides, you need to fertilize it in early spring. However, you must be careful in doing it. Adding a small amount of nitrogen or a thin layer of compost is better than over-fertilize the trees. Moreover, you also need to prune the trees in winter.

Since cherry trees are prone to diseases and pests, you need to apply a copper sulfate spray in winter. To control pests and disease, it is recommended for you to do it three times during winter. Moreover, you also need to trim branches and leaves that are affected by pests and diseases.

5. Harvesting

Once you perform all the steps of how to plant cherry seeds, you must wait for the trees to bear fruits. If you are successful in planting cherry trees, they will produce fruits in 3 to 7 years.

When it happens, you need to be careful in harvesting them. You must choose fully ripe cherries. Moreover, in picking them, you must use sterilized scissors.

Now that you know the process of how to plant cherry seeds, you can start planning and preparing the steps.

Therefore, you will be able to plant your cherry trees at the right time.

Learn also: how to plant spinach

Video on How to Plant Cherry Seeds

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