sweet cherries

Due to the region’s overheated summer, this weekend could be the last chance to pick cherries this year at Washington State University’s Tukey Orchard.

UFOs in Your Cherry Orchard Two-year-old trees in the WSU Roza Experimental Orchard near Prosser are the first step in transforming a 100-year-old production system for sweet cherries—and they have UFOs. No, the trees don’t harbor aliens, but they do grow unique branches. These “upright fruiting offshoots” form the core of a novel architecture ideally […]

Two-year-old trees in the WSU Roza Experimental Orchard near Prosser are the first step in transforming a 100-year-old production system for sweet cherries—and they have UFOs. No, the trees don’t harbor aliens, but they do grow unique branches. These “upright fruiting offshoots” form the core of a novel architecture ideally suited for mechanized harvesters in […]

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Tree fruit growers in Washington, Michigan and New York will be receiving a survey from Haley Consulting Services asking growers about their horticultural practices and orchard characteristics. Responding to the survey is critical, as growers’ responses will help guide the Solid Set Canopy Delivery System for Apples and Cherries, a two-year, USDA-funded […]

PROSSER, Wash. — The press is invited to attend a Cherry Industry Information Session & Orchard Tour. The tour is slated for November 17 from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. Participants will assemble in the Hamilton Hall Large Conference room at the Washington State University Irrigated Agriculture Research and Extension Center located at 24016 N. […]

PROSSER, Wash. — The 2011 WSU Cherry Field Day is slated for June 8, 2011. The WSU Cherry Field Day is being held in conjunction with the Oregon State University Cherry Pre-Harvest Tour in The Dalles, Oregon. Orchard tours will begin in The Dalles on June 7th, and then move to the Yakima Valley on […]

High-throughput Technologies Get Fruit Breeders’ Juices Flowing Scientists in Washington State University’s horticultural genomics program are the first to routinely provide DNA information to their colleagues in tree fruit breeding programs to assist with the development of new apple varieties. The genes associated with desirable traits have traditionally been comparable to needles in a haystack, […]

WSU Scientist Working to Improve Nutrients in Beef “You are what you eat” pretty well sums up research being conducted by WSU animal scientist Mark Nelson. Nelson, an associate professor in the Department of Animal Sciences, is currently investigating new ways to reduce the saturated fat content in beef by changing what cattle eat. He […]

It’s a Fact In 2006, Washington growers produced 2,760,000 pounds of peppermint valued at nearly $35 million. Washington is the nation’s leading producer of peppermint. On Solid Ground is a weekly, electronic newsletter for the friends and stakeholders of the Washington State University College of Agricultural, Human, and Natural Resource Sciences (CAHNRS), WSU Extension and […]

PROSSER, Wash. — Rich, velvet-red, fresh sweet cherries are in high demand, and so are skilled laborers to harvest the highly perishable crop. However, labor shortages and labor costs may soon be a thing of the past for Northwest cherry producers, if consumers will accept their fresh cherries free of stems. In a project funded […]