Black Tartarian Cherry Tree

Why do our classic fruit varieties disappear? Sometimes its because they are just too good to take commercial handling. That’s certainly true of the Black Tartarian Sweet Cherry. It is so packed with juicy goodness that it doesn’t travel well in trucks, or take all the handling between tree and grocery store. The heirloom variety is a fantastic garden tree, though, and you can be harvesting baskets of delicious, juicy, purple-black fruits from your very own tree within just a few years. It has a distinctive rich flavor that balances sweet and acid just perfectly, making it wonderful for eating sun-warm from the tree, baking into pies and goodies, or turning into delicious preserves. Fast-growing, it soon becomes a full-sized tree, around 15 feet tall and wide, carrying a full crop in 2 to 5 years. It’s been around since the 1700’s, loved by generations, and you will love it too. The cherries ripen early, and it also makes a great pollinator for your other sweet cherries, and is effective with almost all popular varieties, including Bing, Napoleon, Rainier, Lapins, Stella, and Van. You do need a second tree of a different variety for most sweet cherries, so check out our cherry trees page. For a self-pollinating sweet cherry, consider the Lapins variety.

• Heirloom variety that has stood the test of time
• Juicy fruits have a deep purple-red skin and delicious red flesh
• Rich, full flavor for both eating fresh, baking and preserves
• Crops well while still young, and carries a large crop
• Broad-range pollinator for most popular varieties

The Black Tartarian Sweet Cherry Tree is best planted in full-sun, and in well-drained soil that is rich and not dry. Add plenty of compost when planting, and water regularly while young. It is hardy from zone 5 to zone 9, and growers find cherries do best in areas with dry, sunny summers. In cold zones it will fruit best if planted at the foot of a south-facing wall or fence, and spread out as an espalier. With a free-standing tree, prune once the crop has been harvested, taking out up to 30% of the growth to create a broad tree with well-spaced branches at wide angles (to prevent splitting). We recommend an open, vase shape with about 5 main branches. Cherries should be fully ripened on the tree, so you may need to throw a net over it to protect the ripe fruit from birds.