News about Germany

Cherries and sour cherries are sisters

Breeding

26 Sep 2024

‘Sour cherries originated in the Caspian and Black Sea regions through the natural crossing of the two parental species of the steppe cherry and the sweet cherry. The exact time, place and structure of the genome have not yet been fully clarified.

Here is the balance of the German market in the latest USDA report

Production

05 Sep 2024

Germany is the third-largest importer of fresh cherries worldwide, after China/Hong Kong and Russia. From 2010 to 2022, between 52% and 77% of the cherries consumed in Germany were imported, with most imports coming from other EU member states

Wild bees: enhancing pollination efficiency in sweet cherry orchards

Crop protection

25 Jul 2024

The Belgian study focused on sweet cherry trees and observed the interaction between bumblebees and honeybees. The presence of bumblebees, particularly wild queens, was found to significantly influence honeybees’ behavior; they increased the row-switching frequency by ten times.

Altes Land (Germany): early harvest but quality cherries thanks to covers

Production

03 Jul 2024

'Thanks to the early blossoming this year, the harvest is particularly early,' explains Claus Schliecker, president of Landvolk Niedersachsen. He and his colleagues invest around EUR 120,000 per hectare to cover the cherry trees with rain covers and insect nets.

Price trends: downward fluctuations in the German market

Markets

01 Jul 2024

Spanish offerings dominated the scene and played a particularly important role in Berlin. Fruit larger than 32 mm cost about EUR 8 per kg. In Hamburg and Cologne, the presence had expanded considerably and were therefore cheaper.

German study reveals how calcium chloride can solve the fight against cracking

Crop protection

27 Jun 2024

Calcium intervenes in the early stages of crack formation. When applied, it promotes the cross-linking of cell wall components, which in turn modulates enzyme activity. This results in a stronger cell wall.

Cherry market: a global analysis of harvest trends

Markets

17 Jun 2024

The cherry harvest in the northern hemisphere got off to a promising start, being 10-15 days earlier than in previous years in some European countries. This early start also led to an early end of the season for some varieties.

German cherry harvest: an early start between frost and rain

Production

14 Jun 2024

'There is almost nothing to harvest,' says Joachim Lissner, general manager of the state horticultural association. With the April frost, the flowers and some fruit froze. The Thuringian farms could therefore only harvest 10-15% of the crop.

The Consortium of German Nurseries presents a new brand identity and expands its range with new dwarfing rootstocks

Rootstocks

12 Jun 2024

The Consortium of German Nurseries revised its brand identity and presents itself with an umbrella brand strategy. This support contributes to the fact that the CDB enjoys a high level of recognition in particular with GiSelA®, the market leader for rootstocks.

Mode of action of Calcium in reducing macrocracking of sweet cherry fruit

Tech management

15 May 2024

The objective of the German study was to identify the physiological mechanism through which Ca reduces rain macrocracking (rain cracking) in sweet cherry fruit. Results demonstrate that multiple applications of CaCl2 were not effective in decreasing fruit macrocracking.