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Sweetheart

  • Country of origin: Canada
  • Picking season: Late
  • Self-fertility: Self-fertile

Sweetheart has all the characteristic flavor elements of a good sweet cherry, predominantly sweet, but not at all sugary, with an underlying hint (no more than that) of bitter sharpness. The flavor is arguably richer than is usual amongst cherries. To get the best flavor, pick when fully ripe and eat immediately. We think all sweet cherries are best when eaten slightly cool, but not chilled.

Sweetheart is also self-fertile, and ripens quite late in the cherry season. Another unusual characteristic is that the picking period is longer than most, because ripening is uneven - meaning you don't get the inevitable glut which is a feature of other varieties.

Prunus avium

Sweetheart cherry trees for sale

  • 11-year maiden bare-root tree 24.45€
    Gisela 5 rootstock
    Small size (2m-2.5m after 10 years)
  • 21-year maiden bare-root tree 24.45€
    Colt rootstock
    Large size (3m-4m after 10 years)
Next deliveries

Deliveries resume December 2020

How to grow

Sweetheart is a precocious sweet cherry, and starts to bear fruit relatively young - you may get fruit within a 2-3 of years of planting, whereas most cherries will start to bear fruit after about 3-4 years.

History

Developed by the Summerland Research Station, British Columbia, Canada and released in 1990. It is a cross between Van and Newstar.

Sweetheart characteristics

  • Picking seasonLate
  • CroppingHeavy
  • Keeping1-3 days
  • Fruit persistenceRipens over a period
  • Useful forEating fresh
  • Gardening skillBeginner
  • Self-fertilitySelf-fertile
  • Flowering group3
  • Pollinating othersGood
  • VigourVigorous
  • PrecocityPrecocious
  • Bearing regularityRegular
  • Bacterial cankerSome susceptibility
  • Fruit splittingSome resistance
  • Climate typeTemperate climates
  • Summer average maximum temperaturesCool ( 20-24C / 68-75F)Warm (25-30C / 76-85F)
  • Country of originCanada
  • Period of origin1950 - 1999
  • Flower colourWhite
  • Fruit colourRed
  • AwardsRHS Award of Garden Merit