The Family Kitchen Gardener (1856)/Cherry
CHERRY.
Cerasus, var.—Cerisier, Fr.—Kirschenbaum, Ger.
Somw species of the Cherry is native to every temperate climate. History records its culture before the Christian era. It is the earliest of our stone fruits, and comes into use about the 8th or 20th of June, according to the season. The tree is of great diversity of habit, size and shape. The fruit, too, possesses every variety of flavor, from the most tart to a honey sweet. In cookery and distillation it is compounded into endless forms. In ancient and modern times it is peculiarly a wayside tree—an avenue of Cherry trees characterizing the dwellings of the great in the 16th century. The medicinal properties of the fruit are rather vague, though it is considered wholesome. Its gum is supposed to be nearly equal to the gum arabic of commerce. The wood is extensively used in domestic cabinet work. There are nearly a hundred varieties, whose qualities may all be embraced in half a dozen sorts.
Bigarreau.—Color pale yellow, with red cheek, and when fully ripe, of a bright amber; large size, irregularly heart-shaped. Flesh firm, adhering to the stone; rich and high flavored. Stalk about two inches long; growth strong and upright. A great bearer; hangs long on the tree. Ripe about the 4th of July.
Black Tartarian, or Black Circassian.—Fruit very large; irregularly heart-shaped; of a shining black color when fully ripe; stalk an inch and a half long. Flesh dark purple, very rich and juicy; stone quite small. Ripe from the 20th to the end of June. The finest Black Cherry that is grown. A handsome tree, of rapid growth and large foliage.
Carnation.—Color a bright, shining, waxy, marbled red; fine round form; stalk short and stout. Flesh tender when fully ripe, of a rich sub-acid flavor. One of the best cooking varieties. Ripe about the first of July, and hangs long on the tree; a good bearer. Tree low-growing and round-headed.
Elton.—Color pale, waxy yellow, cheek next the sun of a shining, pale red, mottled, or streaked. The very largest size, heart-shaped; stalk one and a half to two inches long. Flesh, when fully ripe, tender, juicy and of the very best flavor. Ripe about the 20th of June. Tree of strong growth and regular form, foliage large.
Kentish.—There are several varieties that go under this name, such as May Cherry, Early Richmond, Flemish of some. There is also a Late Kentish, or Pie Cherry, very common. The sort we now allude to is the Early Kentish, or Early Richmond. It generally produces its fruit in pairs, of a fine dark red color when ripe. Stalk about an inch long, adhering to the stone. Flesh juicy, of a rather sharp, acid flavor. Ripe from the 15th to 25th of June. A low, spreading tree, in very general cultivation.
Late Duke.—Color dark red; large size; of a heart shape, rather rounding. Flesh amber colored, rich and juicy. Stone large, oval. Ripe, end of July. Does well in light soils. An excellent late variety, either for the dessert or the kitchen.
May Duke.—Every lover of this fruit has heard of the May Duke Cherry, which for fine flavor, prolific bearing, and early ripeness, stands alone. When fully ripe it is “the Cherry,” and should be in every garden or orchard. Color very dark red, round form. Flesh very juicy, rich and melting; stone small; a great bearer; tree regularly formed, wood short and full of spurs. Ripe about the 8th of June. This variety is invariably pulled before it is ripe.
Morello.—The latest of all the Cherries. It hung on the tree with us, last year, till the 24th of August. They are so tart that neither birds nor bipeds partake. Fruit round; color very dark, or quite black when fully ripe. Flesh very dark, more juicy than any other variety, and has not an equal for the kitchen. It is in use from the middle of July to the middle of August. Tree of medium growth, round and pendulous form. The Common Morello is a smaller and inferior variety.
White Bigarreau, White Heart, and Oxheart of some.—It is not our purpose to decide what fruits belong to these names, whereof so many writers disagree. Our object is to call attention to the variety that ripens about the 15th of June, just between the May Duke and the Elton. We cultivate it under the former name. Fruit heart-shaped, of a pale yellowish-white color, with a marbled-red on the side towards the sun. Flesh, when fully ripe, tender and luscious; stone large. Tree regularly formed, and a great bearer when fully established.
These constitute the best of the Cherries, and such as produce their fruit throughout the season. I am aware of the very high character borne by some of the new sorts, which we have not tested, nor have they been fully tried by others. To enter into a detail of such, would frustrate our object, in directing attention only to the best known for family use or the market.
Culture.—A light, sandy loam, in an open exposure, is the best soil for the Cherry. Though we have them bearing fruit in both wet and dry soils, yet the finest orchards are known to be on a rich, sandy loam, over a gravelly bottom. We prefer planting this tree early in Spring; they will require to be twenty-five feet apart. The pruning is of the simplest form, many of the kind rarely requiring the knife, while others, as the Bigarreau, need to have the long, rampant shoots that stretch beyond the boundary of the tree shortened every September, till they are formed.
Propagation—This is done both by budding and grafting. The former is the most general practice of nurserymen, who sow yearly, in August, large quantities of the Common Black Cherry, about one inch deep, which vegetate freely in Spring, and after two years growth are fit to be budded. This is done in August or even the first of September, according to the weather. Transplant the stocks one year before they are worked; they thus make more fibrous roots, and when required to be moved again will grow with greater certainty.
The Cherry is brought to our markets in the most slovenly state, in large tubs, and frequently pulled from the stems, a mere compound of half-bruised, half-rotten, and half-ripe fruit, and of course it brings much less than its real value. Cherries should be pulled with care, having the stems all attached to the fruit, and handled as little as possible. If for the table, pick them a few hours before they are wanted, and put them in a cool place. If for the market, put them in shallow vessels to prevent bruising as much as possible. They will bring double the price of fruit in the ordinary state.