The cultivation and breeding of sour cherries has a long tradition in Germany. The first breeding activities are associated with the work of M. Schmidt in Müncheberg and M. Zwitzscher in Cologne-Vogelsang. As a result, the cultivars 'Mailot', 'Cerella', 'Nabella', 'Successa', and 'Bonnie' were selected.
In a second breeding program by H. Jacob in Geisenheim, the two cultivars 'Gerema' and 'Geresa' were selected in 1993. In 1965, a third breeding program was started by B. Wolfram in Müncheberg, which was continued in Dresden-Pillnitz from 1971 to 2000. The success of this breeding work is documented by the cultivars 'Karneol', 'Korund', 'Topas', 'Safir', and 'Morina'.
DSince 2001, M. Schuster continued this program. Eight new cultivars have already been released since 2001, 'Jade', Achat', 'Spinell', 'Turmalin', 'Taurus', 'Rubellit', 'Jachim', and 'Boas'. Two new breeding clones are currently in multi-site testing and 87 clones are in stage II evaluation. The main breeding objectives are fruit quality and fertility, resistance to biotic and abiotic stresses and characteristics for mechanical harvesting of the fruits
Ripening time - JKI sour cherry cultivars in comparison to cultivars 'Ungarische Traubige', 'Morina', and 'Schattenmorelle'.
Mirko Schuster
Institute of Breeding Research on Fruit Crops, Julius Kühn-Institut, Dresden-Pillnitz (DE)
19 Dec 2025
A detailed study highlights how high-pressure humidification in cold storage rooms significantly reduces cherry dehydration after hydrocooling, preserving fruit quality during post-harvest storage and before packaging, even in heterogeneous conditions.
12 Jun 2024
In the town of Orondo, Griggs Farms covers almost 300 hectares of land. Among the varieties of cherries that grow on the farm is the Orondo Ruby, a Washington variety that is sweeter and more acidic than the Rainier and stays fresh longer than the Bing.
22 Jul 2026
From July 15 to August 15, Canadian Cherry Month encourages shoppers to check labels, bags and store signs before buying Canadian sweet cherries. The BC Cherry Association campaign supports local growers and promotes the Flip & Share contest with weekly prizes available.
22 Jul 2026
A study of three Hungarian sour cherry cultivars examines how ripening, sugars, organic acids, vitamin C, anthocyanins, polyphenols and melatonin shape fruit quality, nutraceutical value and the best harvest time for fresh markets and industrial processing applications.
