Few fruits capture the essence of summer quite like cherries. Their arrival each year is fleeting — a sign that sunny days and farmers’ market abundance have truly begun. In California, the cherry season begins in mid-May, peaks by the end of the month, and quickly tapers off by mid-June. Blink, and you might miss it.
California’s Cherry Country
The San Joaquin and Santa Clara Valleys provide ideal conditions for growing cherries — a perfect blend of nutrient-rich soil, sunny days, and cool evenings. Across these regions, about 600 growers tend more than 26,000 acres of orchards, most of them small family farms ranging from 10 to 30 acres. Their care and craftsmanship yield some of the most flavorful cherries in the country.
Consumer demand continues to rise both domestically and abroad, with Japan remaining one of the largest international markets for California-grown cherries.
Favorite Varieties
California’s most popular cherries — Bing and Rainier — are beloved for their size, sweetness, and crisp, juicy bite.
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Bing cherries have deep red skin and rich, sweet flavor — the quintessential cherry for snacking, baking, or preserving.
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Rainier cherries, with their golden blush and delicate pink hue, offer fine-textured flesh and a subtle, honeyed sweetness.
During the short season, you may also find up to 15 different varieties at local farmers’ markets, including Chelan, Ferrovia, Utah Giant, Brook, Royal Rainier, Royal Lynn, and Burlat, among others. Each variety offers its own nuances of sweetness, color, and texture.
A Bit of Cherry History
According to the California Cherry Board, the cultivation of sweet cherries likely began with the ancient Greeks and Romans, who prized not only the fruit but also the tree’s fine-grained timber. Sweet cherries arrived in America with English colonists in 1629 and were later brought to California by Spanish missionaries.
Today’s Bing cherry, named for Ah Bing, a Chinese orchard foreman in Oregon during the 1800s, traces its lineage to this era of westward expansion. Botanically, sweet cherries (Prunus avium) belong to the Rosaceae family — making them cousins to peaches, plums, apricots, and almonds.
Health Benefits and Nutrition
Beyond their irresistible flavor, cherries pack an impressive nutritional punch. Just 10 raw cherries provide about 10% of your daily fiber. They’re also rich in vitamin C, potassium, and melatonin, which supports restful sleep.
Deep red Bing cherries contain anthocyanins, powerful antioxidants that may help reduce inflammation and protect against arthritis, heart disease, and even certain cancers.
How to Enjoy the Season
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Eat cherries fresh out of hand — the simplest and best way to savor them.
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Add to yogurt, salads, or granola for a pop of sweetness.
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Bake into pies, crisps, or clafoutis, or simmer into preserves.
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Freeze pitted cherries to enjoy a taste of summer later in the year.
However you enjoy them, cherries remind us of nature’s generosity — a short, shining moment of sweetness worth celebrating every spring.
RECIPES: Mache Salad with Cherries and Pancetta, Romaine Salad with Smoked Turkey and Cherries, Grilled Chicken with Cherries, Fresh Cherry Salad with Melon and Mint, Grilled Pork Chops with Cherry Chutney, Arugula Cherry Salad with Cherry Vinaigrette, Bing Cherry Ice Cream, Smokey Cherry Chipotle Barbecue Sauce, How to Make Cherry Vinegar, Curried Chicken Cherry Salad, Fresh Cherry Pie, How to Make Cherry Brandy, Lazy Man’s Cobbler,
