Testing of Sweet Cherry Varieties in Belgium

The accelerated introduction of new high quality sweet cherry (Prunus avium L.) varieties has given the Belgian cherry industry a brighter future. The three main cultivars grown in Belgium at present are 'Kordia', 'Lapins' and 'Regina', but these have some disadvantages. 'Schneiders Spate Knorpelkirsche', 'Summit', 'Sweetheart', 'Karina' and 'Sylvia' also are grown in Belgium. This assortment of cultivars would be complemented best with a self-fertile variety that is not susceptible to frost or cracking. The ideal variety should be productive, late ripening, low in vigour and have good fruit quality (firm and large). It should be grafted on 'Gisela 5' rootstock, which is more productive and less susceptible to frost than 'Colt' or P. avium. In the first stage of screening, 3 trees per cultivar grafted on 'Gisela 5' were planted with 'Kordia' as the standard. These were assessed for at least 4 production years. The best cultivars from the first screening were planted on a larger scale (second screening), with the intention of finding solutions to their negative qualities. Following the first screening (planted in 1999), 'Coralise', 'Vanda', 'Summersun', 'Noire de Meched' and 'Skeena' were planted for a second screening. Other interesting cultivars in this series have been 'Tieton', 'Benton' (a.k.a. 'Columbia') and 'Hertford'. With the exception of 'Skeena', these cultivars all ripen in the 3(rd) to 6(th) week of the harvest season. Thus, there still is a need for varieties that ripen very early or very late.