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CHERRIES

ORIGIN OF CHERRIES

Sweet cherries are believed to have originated in the region between the Black and Caspian Seas, near the ancient city of Cerasus (modern-day Giresun, Turkey).

Sweet cherries are indigenous to parts of Asia and native to Europe. They may be found in Sweden, Greece, Italy and Spain. The first nation to cultivate cherries was Greece.

In South Africa, cherries are grown by commercial and small farmers in the Western Cape, Eastern Free State and Mpumalanga.

The name “Cherry” has a middle English and French origin and its meaning is “cherry fruit”. PRUNUS Avium is the main ancestor of sweet cherries while sour cherries, grown mainly for cooking stem from PRUNUS Cerasus.

DID YOU KNOW?

The first cherry trees that successfully produced the fruit in South Africa were planted in 1905 in the Clocolan district of the Free State. Some of the original trees may be seen on the farm Platkop in the area.

South African Cherries are produced using ethical and environmentally friendly techniques.

Total cherry production: Approx 1 966 Tonnes
Market Value 2022/2023: R169 million
Cherry Exports: Approx 876 Tonnes
On-farm employment: 1 156 Permanent labourers
462 Dependants

CHOOSE YOUR FAVOURITE CULTIVAR

There are over 1200 varieties of cherries. The main sweet cherry cultivars in South Africa are:

 

Royal Hazel 15%

Royal Tioga 11%

Lapins 10%

Royal Lynn 8%

Royal Helen 7%

MAKING THE MOST OF YOUR CHERRIES

How to choose cherries?:
  • Look for bright green stems, which are signs of freshness. You want cherries that are firm, plump and dense, with shiny skins and saturated colour. (Colour itself is not always an indicator of quality since different varieties have different hues).
  • Avoid bruised or wrinkled cherries.
How to ripen:
  • The best way is to leave plums in a bowl at room temperature. To quicken the ripening, place the fruit in a pierced paper bag with an apple or banana
  • To slow ripening, place plums in the fridge
How to pit a cherry:
  • If you don’t have a cherry pitter, a novel method is to place the cherry on top of an empty
    wine bottle with the stem up, remove the stem and use the back of a chop stick to push the
    pit into the bottle.
Cherry recipes:
  • There are many delicious ways to enjoy cherries. Fresh, ripe cherries are delicious to snack
    on, while cherries may be enjoyed as a tasty ingredient in a wide range of desserts, salads,
    mains and vegetarian dishes. See our exciting recipe pages