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Rainier Sweet Cherry

bare-root trees
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Prunus avium
Summer, red-blushed yellow skin.

Wash. P1-680 (Bing × Van) Harold W. Fogel intro, WA Ag Exp Stn and USDA, 1960.

Classic dessert cherry. Very large fruit, light yellow skin with red blush. Firm fine-textured flesh with a distinct delicious flavor. Colorless juice. Good fresh or canned. Quite resistant to cracking. Ripens midsummer. Vigorous productive tree. Early to come into bearing. Requires a second variety for pollination. Z4/5. (3–6' grafted bare-root trees)

Indigenous Royalties.
ships in spring
Quick Details
Harvest Season
summer
Indigenous Royalties
Yes
Skin Color
red-blushed yellow
Hardy to Zone
4
Compare
Compare with other Sweet Cherries
Variety Product Type Harvest Season Skin Color Hardy to Zone
Benton bare-root trees summer deep red 5
BlackGold bare-root trees summer dark red 4
Lapins bare-root trees summer black-mahogany red 4
Leningrad bare-root trees summer dark red 4
Rainier bare-root trees summer red-blushed yellow 4
Stella bare-root trees midsummer black 4
WhiteGold bare-root trees summer red-blushed gold 4
Additional Information

Cherries Prunus spp.

Stone Fruits Widely cultivated around the world and adaptable to most of New England. Not highly particular as to soils. Clingstone means the fruit’s flesh sticks to the pit (or stone) and a freestone pit drops cleanly away from the flesh. Like our apples and pears, all our stone fruits are grafted trees.

Sweet Cherries Prunus avium

Generally grow into large trees although the flowers are tender and fruiting can be iffy in central Maine and north. We are testing the hardiest varieties and hope to keep adding more varieties.

Mature trees reach 25–30' tall.

Pie Cherries Prunus cerasus

Also called Sour Cherries. Delicious enough to eat right off the tree and especially good in pies. They fruit in early to midsummer and don’t mind heavy soil. Pie cherries are generally divided into two groups: Morello types have dark red spherical fruit, dark juice and relatively small compact trees. Montmorency (or Amarelle) types have light red slightly flattened fruit, clear juice and medium-sized somewhat open trees.

Pie cherries are significantly hardier than sweet cherries but flower buds may be damaged in colder winters. We often encounter excellent crops in central Maine.

Mature trees reach 10–15' tall.

Other “Cherries” For some interesting fruits sometimes called “cherries,” see Cornelian Cherries and Nanking Cherries. Sometimes we also stock Bush Cherries and Dwarf Sour Cherries, so check back in future years!

Growing Sweet and Pie Cherries

  • Soil: Prefers well-drained fertile soil; pie cherries are more forgiving and adaptable than sweet cherries.
  • Sun: Full.
  • Pollination:
    • Most sweet cherries need a second variety for pollination, so plant two or more for best results.
    • Pie cherries are self-pollinating.
  • Spacing:
    • Plant sweet cherries 25' apart.
    • Plant pie cherries 15–20' apart.
  • Planting: See our planning and planting and pests and diseases pages for more information about soil prep, planting and pest control.

Shipping

Items from our perennial plants warehouse ordered on or before February 20 will ship from March through early May, starting with warmer areas and finishing in colder areas.

Orders placed after February 20 will ship from April to May.