Cherries at Home 5, originally uploaded by Swami Stream.

One more Cherry Shot at home early morning.

Cherry trees fall into one of three groups the sweet, the sour and the duke. Sour cherry trees do well in almost any situation, while sweet cherry trees may be better suited for richer soil that has good drainage.

Cherry trees on the average live for 25 to 30 years. There are hundreds of varieties of cherry trees, which randomly bloom from late March to the middle of May, each blooming only for aproximately one week.

Sweet cherries do not stand up to cooking well, but are excellant for eating fresh. Sour cherries are best for cooking and are wonderfull for many recipes. The cherry tree is of the rose family of plants.

Uploaded by Swami Stream on 7 Jun 09, 7.30PM IST.

Cherries at Home 3, originally uploaded by Swami Stream.

These Cherries are from Himachal Pradesh

Cherry growers in Himachal Pradesh, often called the country’s fruit bowl, are hoping for a bumper crop.

‘We are expecting a bumper cherry crop because of the favourable climatic conditions in the flowering season (March-April). Field reports indicate a good production,’ said S.P. Bhardwaj, joint director at the Solan-based Dr Y.S. Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry.

Himachal Pradesh produced 453 tonnes of cherry in 2008-09, though it was higher in 2007-08 – 698 tonnes.

The state horticulture department believes production will match that of two years ago. ‘This time, production is likely to cross the mark of 2007-08,’ horticulture research officer Daulat Ram said.

The fruit is also fast catching up as an alternative crop in apple-growing areas in the higher slopes of the Himalayas.

Uploaded by Swami Stream on 7 Jun 09, 10.45AM IST.