Interesting. Maybe I will try grafting a scion from my Lapins onto a Carmine Jewel sucker. If it survives, then try another variety for better pollination, but Lapins is supposedly self-pollinating. I think my Kristin tree croaked. The location wasn’t very good. I have tried to grow sweet cherries for years without much success, but the area is too dry and sandy, with large trees nearby. Even the Carmine jewels don’t do well there, as opposed to my CJs at another property which are going gangbusters.
1 Like
My CJ grows very well here and is sending suckers 15’ away from the tree. I have Starkrisom grafted on CJ. It is another version of lapin. I think
one of unlabeled graft is Kristin. Some graft died ,some graft lives, I am kinda lost the track of grafted cultivars now.
1 Like
Easy as Pie Bush Cherry
Easy As Pie bush cherry offers both ornamental beauty and delicious fruit. Its showy white spring flowers are followed by showy tart berries. Perfect for baking, preserves, or eating fresh.
Hardiness Zones:
3a, 3b, 4a, 4b, 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b
website says ‘plant not sold online’ but it is… at various vendors.
Im thinking about trying it…but not sure if its worth fooling with…
2 Likes
I have tried to grow some of the bush cherries from the prairie states- US and Canada. They will grow here in PNWet, but they get diseases and the fruit falls off. There was a kind that the nurseries used to sell called Prinsepia. I grew that too. Same problem. Lon Rombough told me about that disease and it clarified it for me. They grow well in other areas, though.
JohN S
PDX OR
I’m in the Great Lakes region (lots of rain and humidity). Carmine Jewel produces well for me, but I have noticed that some disease hits them. It has taken out a few big branches and two complete plants down to the roots, one of them came back one didn’t. I have several plants that are doing fine, but they are definitely not bulletproof in wet climates.
3 Likes
I’ll be on the lookout for this. Thank you for mentioning it.
1 Like
I remember seeing a bush cherry in far NE Oregon, in the Wallowas. It’s climate is more like Montana than Portland. It was very healthy and chock full of fruit.
John S
PDX OR
2 Likes
I have observed the same issue with Carmine Jewell and also with Juliet. My theory is that it is cherry leaf spot or some other fungal disease because it hits worse when I haven’t used any fungicides.
1 Like
CJ is susceptible to Brown Rot Blossom Blight if it is damp during bloom. As far as I know, all cherries have this issue.
2 Likes
Spray for leaf spot once the cherries are done.
Right, but I am talking about something that kills whole branches all the way to the ground. I have only seen it on the romance cherries.
That is cherry spot it kills entire bushes.
1 Like
Ive been having scale issues with carmine jewel. This year in anticipation of more problems i have cut my two bushes down and hope for some clean growth and will be more diligent spraying.
1 Like
Blossom Blight is easy to identify because the blooms wilt into a tan color (petals normally fall off white) and the nearby twig might ooze. For me, dieback on CJ has been limited to the twigs from which the blooms are attached.
Blossom blight in general can cause sever dieback or even kill trees, especially with repeated infections. I’ve lost other cherries, like montmorency, and apricots to blossom blight. Captain just before bloom is the cheapest solution. I also use myclobutanil to prevent defoliation from leaf spot.
2 Likes
my romance series cherries got brown rot bad 2 summers ago when we got a very warm wet summer. i sprayed but it rained just about everyday that summer. i had to quickly prune out the whole center of the trees to save them. only then could i get it under control with some spray. the whole middle of the bushes were wilted with brown rot on most of the fruit. outside edges weren’t bad. i still got about 60% of the crop. c.j was hit the hardest. i now prune to keep the center open every spring.
3 Likes
Update … I’m pretty sure the issue I’ve had with CJ in the past is brown rot blossom blight. I ususlly don’t spray my CJs in early spring unless I have enough Daconil or copper left after spraying peaches for PLC, so I spray some and not others. This year I sprayed all but one and that one got hit buy brown rot blossom blight bad. 90% of the tree is brown and wilted. The others are perfectly fine. Probably the same thing happened in the past.
I have grown 5 types of sour cherries. The only ones I eat fresh are the Nanking Cherry. I have 4 of them. My only complaint is they are rather small but worth it in my opinion. They also flower beautifully.
11 Likes
Nice trees, prunus tomentosa ist not related to cherries but plum though. I used to grow some in their more natural bushform. You trained them well. In my climate they are very susceptibel to monilia. They are very regenerative too but loosing some shoots every spring would make a treeform hard to maintain.
Now I am using Nanking seedlings as very dwarfing rootstock for plum as an experiment.
3 Likes
those who grow juliet, carmine jewel, and wowza anyone care to speak o nthe differences? I think i get enough abuot juliet and carmine jewel but I have not heard much about wowza.
I want for fresh eating and for making my own cherries in syrup and tart cherry juice.
1 Like
i grow monty and its neck and neck with juliet in most years for fresh eating. i do like eating sour cherries fresh so thats that but no sour cherry comes close to a sweet as far as i know. others may say different. monty actually has a sweet parent in its lineage. probably why it has a better flavor profile…
2 Likes