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If you haven't just planted an ornamental cherry for its spectacular flowers, expect a bountiful harvest after the lush bloom. If this does not happen, every gardener is probably wondering what can be done to bring the cherry tree to bear fruit in the next garden year.
The fact that the cherry tree remains without cherries can have various reasons. It helps to consider the following in this order:
- Has the cherry tree possibly not yet reached the productive age?
- Was there frost during flowering, were there too few bees around or is there a lack of a pollinator?
- Does the cherry tree lack nutrients or is it even affected by a disease?
maturity of the cherry trees
As a rule, one to two-year-old cherry trees are offered in specialist shops. In the first 2-3 years after planting, you can hardly count on a significant yield. During this time, the shoots grow and the crown structure is built up through the targeted cutting measures. Both sweet and sour cherries start bearing from about the 5th year. In order to maintain and ensure productivity, the fruit wood that has been removed from most sour cherry varieties should be cut out regularly.
problems with fertilization
If the cherry tree has produced a lot of flowers in spring and only a few or no fruits have emerged from them, this can indicate a lack of fertilization. Fruit development from the flower requires the seed of the female flower to be pollinated with pollen from the male flower.
In the case of self-pollinating cherry varieties, it is sufficient if the male and female fertilizing organs of the same tree fertilize each other. For most cherry trees, having a suitable pollinator variety nearby will have a beneficial effect on the pollination process. Insects, especially bees, play an important role because they are responsible for transporting pollen.
tips and tricks
In a wet or cold spring, sometimes there is not enough bee flight and therefore no fertilization. In this case, one only has to hope that next spring will bring better bee flight weather.