Sweet cherry sweetheart

Sweet cherry is a rare visitor to personal plots, even though breeders are replenishing the line with new varieties and hybrids with high resistance to both drought and severe frosts. Thanks to these characteristics, the southern fruit feels great in the cold climatic conditions of the Urals and Siberia. Sweetheart cherry variety combines most of the virtues inherent in the culture.

The variety was created by Canadian breeders when crossing the Van and Newstar species. The plant was bred in 1975, at home they met him only in 1994. The culture was quickly appreciated by gardeners. The variety was brought to Russia in the early 2000s.

The tree is medium-sized, reaching a height of 3-4 m. Young plants have an average crown density, round in shape. With age, it becomes more spreading with a slight drooping of branches. Fruiting only on the shoots of the current year. Inflorescences form a bouquet with flowers in the amount of 8-12 pcs.

Among the virtues of culture are the following:

• grows well in temperate climates;

• high frost resistance;

• the fruits hang on the tree for a long time, about a month;

• fast-growing;

• cherries do not crack after ripening;

• high-yielding species.

The disadvantages include:

• excessive formation of the number of fruits on the branches, which most often leads to fragility of the branches;

• low resistance to powdery mildew.

The fruits are quite large, shaped like a heart. On average, the mass of one berry reaches 9-12 g. There are even larger specimens, up to 15 g. Their color is rich red, with full ripeness of a dark red, almost burgundy hue. The stone is small, well separated from the pulp. The skin is firm but not thick.

Sweetheart has a typical cherry flavor - sweet and sour with a pleasant tart aftertaste. On a five-point scale, the variety is rated at 4.8 points. Despite the fact that the pulp is firm, it is juicy. In cooking, cherries have a universal purpose. Most often, the fruits are consumed fresh. And also very tasty fillings for baking are obtained from them.

Refers to mid-late varieties. Berries ripen at the end of July. After full ripening, the fruits do not crumble, do not crack and do not lose their taste. It begins to bear fruit in 2-3 years of development.

High-yielding variety. On average, 40-50 kg of fruits are harvested from one adult tree. The harvested crop perfectly tolerates transportation, the berries do not flow and do not deteriorate for a long time.

This type of cherry is not only a self-pollinated tree, it is also a universal pollinator for other varieties. It bears fruit annually.

It will not be difficult to grow sweet cherry sweetheart on your personal plot.The culture is pretty hardy. However, some varietal characteristics should be taken into account when planting. The plant prefers to grow in areas with the most sun. Then you can get the largest size and very sweet fruits. In addition, a large amount of sunlight is the best prevention of fungal infections.

It develops well in drained soil, water should not stagnate in the roots and leave a few hours after watering. Prefers to grow on neutral or slightly alkaline soils. Too heavy clayey, like sandy ones, are not suitable for culture. Even if the soil is not very fertile, this situation can be corrected by regular feeding.

When choosing a site, make sure that in the future the tree will not obscure other plantings. Transplanting an already large plant will not work. The choice of a seedling must be approached very carefully, since the future harvest depends on its quality. The seedling should be well developed, not showing signs of disease, the branches should not be withered, and the root system should be intact. Such signs can negatively affect the rooting of the tree.

They choose 2-3-year-old specimens, brown shoots with an even trunk without mechanical damage and a well-developed root system. Shoots must have buds that have not blossomed. The trees are planted at a distance of at least 5 m from each other and other plants.

After planting, the cherries are watered 2 times a week. When the plant has successfully taken root, irrigation is carried out once a week. The main thing is that the soil is not overdried or swampy. For less moisture loss from the soil, mulching with straw or dry grass is carried out.

Feed the tree as needed. Sweet cherry is one of the few crops that does not require frequent additional nutrition. The plant is able to tell itself when it lacks nutrients. If the growth of young shoots is less than 20-25 cm, then additional feeding is needed. The tree especially needs nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. They can be added with organic and mineral compounds. Fertilizers are applied once a year, in early spring before the start of sap flow.

Until the tree begins to bear fruit, pruning is not carried out. They start to it only for 3-4 years of cultivation. The first pruning is the formation of the crown. Sanitation is carried out during the dormant period - in early spring or late autumn. Remove dry branches damaged with signs of disease.

Young seedlings must be prepared for winter so that they do not die. The tree is cleaned of the remnants of fruits both on it and under it, the site - from fallen leaves, weeds. The soil around the trunk is carefully dug up. The trunk of young trees should be covered with agrofibre. Older specimens are able to withstand frosts from 12 to 30 degrees.

Sweetheart has strong immunity to most diseases. As the originator notes, the variety is particularly susceptible to powdery mildew. For the prevention of fungal infections in the spring, before bud break, spraying with Bordeaux mixture is carried out.