Kern cherry growers turn to breeders as climate warms
March 27, 2022 | BY JOHN COX This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Help is on the way for Kern County cherry growers slammed in recent years by warmer winters and hotter springs.
Breeders including locally based IFG are working on new cherry varieties that ideally require fewer "chill hours" during the course of a winter. The intent is also to spin off trees with fruits that ripen on an earlier schedule, potentially offering local growers a time advantage, and breeds that are less susceptible to stress damage from soaring temperatures in May and early June.
But there's more to it. The fruit must also have the firm texture consumers demand, good flavor, an attractive appearance and the ability to withstand weeks in a shipping container bound for Asia.
