The systematic Sweet Cherry Breeding in Germany dates to the first work of R. Nebel and C.F. Rudloff in Müncheberg in 1928. After the Second World War, this work was continued by M. Schmidt in Müncheberg until 1955.
In 1953 E.L. Loewel, E.v. Vahl and F.-G. Zahn started a new breeding program in Jork. As a result, the cultivars 'Alma', 'Annabella', 'Bianca', 'Erika', 'Oktavia', 'Regina', 'Valeska', and 'Viola' were selected. From 1985 to 1999 the program was continued by H. Schmidt in Ahrensburg.
A second breeding programme was started in Naumburg by H. Mihatsch and M. Fischer in 1958 and continued in Dresden-Kauscha from 1971 to 1990. The released cultivars from this program are 'Namare', 'Namosa', 'Naprumi', 'Namati', and 'Nadino'. After both breeding programs were terminated, the plant material was transferred to Dresden-Pillnitz, where sweet cherry breeding has been continued by M. Schuster since 2001.
Seven new cultivars have already been released: 'Narana', Swing® 'PiSue 192', 'Habunt', 'Areko', 'Polka', Aria® 'PiSue 161', and 'PiSue 177'. Nineteen new promising breeding clones are currently under multi-site testing and approximately 100 clones are in stage II evaluation. The main breeding objectives are fruit quality, like size, firmness, sugar content, high productivity, self-fertility, and high resistance to biotic and abiotic stresses.
Image 1: Ripening time - JKI sweet cherry cultivars in comparison to cultivars 'Burlat', 'Kordia', and 'Regina'.
Mirko Schuster
Institute for Breeding Research on Fruit Crops, Julius Kühn-Institut (JKI) – Federal Research Centre for Cultivated Plants, D-01326 Dresden (DE)
15 Dec 2023
Lorena Pinto, Product Manager of A.N.A. Chile Cherries, emphasised that the collaboration with the University is a scenario to present a wide range of fruit varieties that are now experiencing an unusual season due to climatic problems.
30 Dec 2024
For the current season, initial estimates predicted a 59% increase in exports compared to the previous season, which translated into more than 131 million boxes. The figure was corrected by the Chilean Committee for Fruit Cherries.
09 Jul 2025
Poland’s cherry output is forecast at just 115,000 tons in 2025/26, marking a 30% drop due to severe spring frosts. Early varieties were worst hit, with some orchards losing up to 90%. Imports rise sharply while domestic inventories vanish, tightening the EU market.
09 Jul 2025
During the Precision Agriculture Conference in Manhattan, Kansas, German researchers unveiled For5G: a project using digital twins to monitor cherry tree growth. This technology enables accurate yield forecasting, smarter crop management and adaptation to climate-related challeng
