sour cherry picking at cherry tyme orchard in leona valley

I went sour cherry picking with my sister a few weeks ago at Cherry Tyme Orchard in Leona Valley.  It was a lovely day and such a relaxing experience.  Sour cherry pie is my most favorite pie and Cherry Tyme is the only orchard in Southern California growing sour cherries.

Jerry and his wife Melissa have owned the orchard since 2000 but the property has been growing sour cherries since the late 1950s. Then all the trees on the property were the Montmorency variety, a traditional pie cherry named for the Montmorency Valley in France.

In the 1980s a customer suggested to the then owners that they try growing the English Morello sour cherry.  This sour cherry is usually preferred by customers from the Middle East because it resembles the fruit from their homeland.  In 2004, Jerry decided to try growing the Balaton sour cherry.  The Balaton was introduced to the US by a professor at the University of Michigan and originated in the Lake Balaton area of Hungary.  Balatons have deep purple skin and bright red flesh. They are larger, firmer and somewhat sweeter than other Morello Cherries.

Currently, Cherry Tyme has over 100 sour cherry trees on their orchard and, depending on the size of the crop, the cherry season can run for several weeks, generally beginning in late June.  Cherry Tyme uses no pesticides, herbicides or other any chemicals on the cherries or anywhere else on their property.

So, which type is best?  Melissa tells me, “They are interchangeable for jams, jellies, pies, or can be dried and used like raisins. An award winning wine was made from sour cherries grown here, and also vodka is added to cherry juice by some folks.  There are some folk remedies from the old countries that use the stems or pits, even the leaves, and adding a few dried sticks of cherry wood to a bb q fire imparts a nice flavor to meat”.

As far as picking they cherries goes, Jerry is onsite to answer any questions you might have.  He can also point out the different varieties.  Some believe that leaving the stem intact prolongs the life of the fruit so some people bring scissors to snip off the fruit and lave about half the stem intact.  The only major picking no-no:  Do not rip the cherries from the tree removing the entire stem from the branch.  By doing this you remove the new growth that will become next year’s cherries.

Having grown up in Ohio with a Montmorency sour cherry tree of my own, those were the type I picked.  The pie I made was perfect, and I pitted and froze the rest of my bounty for future pies and jam.  The orchard is beautiful and a gentle breeze hits you as you pick. Birdies chirp.  Bees buzz.  It’s a really lovely way to spend the morning.  And I do recommend going in the morning before temperatures in the valley get too high.  No dogs are allowed in the orchard but they do have shaded picnic tables, so bring a picnic with you for lunch.

Even though sour cherries are done for this season you can still get on Cherry Tyme’s mailing list for next year.

Write Melissa at: cherrytyme@email.com and she’ll add you to the list!

So how do Jerry and Melissa enjoy the bounty of their orchard?  Melissa said, “We enjoy them with breakfast, and Jerry makes a great pie”.

Cherry Tyme Sour Cherries

39913 107th St. West

Leona Valley, CA 93551

66.270.0649

cherrytyme@email.com

Need more information?  Contact the Leona Valley Cherry Growers Association at 661.266.7116 or access their website here.