cherry types and fruitset

duajones · June 15, 2007

Word is that the cherry types continue to set well in high heat when others dont. So will they still set fruit in the middle of summer when the temps are high ? Your experiences?

**mdvpc** · June 15, 2007

My temp is 100 degrees today in El Paso-temps have been around 90-93 for two weeks and my cherries are still fruiting.

shelleybean · June 15, 2007

Cherries set fruit for me all summer. They fill that gap when the larger fruited varieties shut down for a few weeks.

Suze · June 15, 2007

Quote:

Originally Posted by mdvpc

My temp is 100 degrees today in El Paso-temps have been around 90-93 for two weeks and my cherries are still fruiting.

Michael, in general/on average, what are your nighttime temps like during the summer there?

frankkj · June 16, 2007

We have had daytime temps in the mid to high 90's for a couple of weeks and my full season toms are still setting fruit, as are my cherrys. All my plants are container grown this year. Got plants over 8' tall with clusters at the top. I'll try to get a couple of pics later today and post.

SUZE, I think your are on to something. As I posted to another thread, I think.....without any scientific documentation... that the combination of daytime and nighttime temps cause tomatoes to stop setting fruit. The plants do fine for me with mid 90's daytime as long as the nighttime temps do not exceed the low 80's. Our night temps have actually been in the 60's and low 70's.

Just something else to think about that is out of our control if you grow outside.

Frank

**mdvpc** · June 16, 2007

Suze-our average summer lows:

61 may
69 june
72 july
70 august

duajones · June 16, 2007

Night time temps in the mid 70s seem to stop fruit set for me. Dont know if thats the case with cherries as I havent really grown many

Fert1 · June 16, 2007

It gets pretty darn hot here in SC, and my cherries keep going ... and going ... and going. They even seem to even withstand the strange wilt diease my garden seems to get every year now. They are the only thing that does survive it and continue to produce.

If all my other plants die from the wilt this year, I may only grow cherries next year. It would be nice to have some slicers, but I'll take the cherries if they are the only thing I can get to survive the disease. They are certainly better than nothing.

jdwhitaker · June 17, 2007

Cherries set fruit for me in all but the worst heat (100+). The trick has been getting the plants to survive spider mite attacks...you'll probably be dealing with fungal diseases further east. They are worth keeping around as long as the plants are healthy and vigorous.

Night temps definitely play a role in the fruitset of all varieties. I get good fruitset with highs in the mid 90's as long as the nights are below 70--that's pretty common in the Permian Basin. Last May was really odd--triple digit highs during the day, but it still cooled off to 70 or a little lower at night. Fruitset was poor during that period, but the plants didn't totally shut down. Even some of the larger varieties managed to produce a small crop.

Lately I've been wondering about the role humidity plays. My thought has always been that humidity was only an indirect cause of poor fruitset, being that high humidity usually leads to warm nights. The past month we've had near perfect temperatures, but oddly high humidity. Fruit set has been good, but not nearly as great as I would hope considering the consistently good temps. That's probably just me being greedy.

Jason

duajones · June 17, 2007

stupice isnt a cherry but I have one growing now that was part of a germination test. Will be interesting to see if it will set any fruit with the high temps and humidity we have here in Corpus.

FlipTX · June 17, 2007

My Husky Cherry Red set fruit for most of the summer last year. Production did slow down considerably but it didn't come to a complete halt until the plant just became too sickly.

Husbear · June 17, 2007

Here in central Houston my Mexico Midget, SunGoldd, and grape maters are still setting some fruit with day time temps of mid 90s and lows of 72. Not as much as when the high temps were in the 80s though. Normally the heat stress and water stress on the plants are what "get" them in mid June. But not as of yet this year. It may be more like wishful thinking but ... I may have to chop them out in a couple of weeks to make way for the fall plants.

duajones · July 6, 2007

Stupice has set fruit and hasnt dropped a blossom yet. On the other hand, Gary O'Sena has done nothing but drop blossoms. While Stupice is not a cherry type, it appears to set well in heat. Still early though so we will see how it does with the upcoming inferno.

June 15, 2007	#1
duajones Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Corpus Christi,Texas Z9 Posts: 1,996	cherry types and fruitset Word is that the cherry types continue to set well in high heat when others dont. So will they still set fruit in the middle of summer when the temps are high ? Your experiences?

June 15, 2007	#2
mdvpc Tomatoville® Moderator Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: San Antonio, Texas Posts: 4,386	My temp is 100 degrees today in El Paso-temps have been around 90-93 for two weeks and my cherries are still fruiting. __________________ Michael

June 15, 2007	#3
shelleybean Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Virginia Beach Posts: 2,648	Cherries set fruit for me all summer. They fill that gap when the larger fruited varieties shut down for a few weeks. __________________ Michele

June 16, 2007	#5
frankkj Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2007 Location: Louisiana Posts: 90	We have had daytime temps in the mid to high 90's for a couple of weeks and my full season toms are still setting fruit, as are my cherrys. All my plants are container grown this year. Got plants over 8' tall with clusters at the top. I'll try to get a couple of pics later today and post. SUZE, I think your are on to something. As I posted to another thread, I think.....without any scientific documentation... that the combination of daytime and nighttime temps cause tomatoes to stop setting fruit. The plants do fine for me with mid 90's daytime as long as the nighttime temps do not exceed the low 80's. Our night temps have actually been in the 60's and low 70's. Just something else to think about that is out of our control if you grow outside. Frank __________________ Old and Wise? Or maybe just getting old?

June 16, 2007	#6
mdvpc Tomatoville® Moderator Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: San Antonio, Texas Posts: 4,386	Suze-our average summer lows: 61 may 69 june 72 july 70 august __________________ Michael

June 16, 2007	#8
Fert1 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2006 Location: Upstate SC, Zone 7 Posts: 543	It gets pretty darn hot here in SC, and my cherries keep going ... and going ... and going. They even seem to even withstand the strange wilt diease my garden seems to get every year now. They are the only thing that does survive it and continue to produce. If all my other plants die from the wilt this year, I may only grow cherries next year. It would be nice to have some slicers, but I'll take the cherries if they are the only thing I can get to survive the disease. They are certainly better than nothing. __________________ Holly Last edited by Fert1; June 16, 2007 at 11:35 PM. Reason: addition

June 17, 2007	#9
jdwhitaker Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Andrews, Texas Posts: 104	Cherries set fruit for me in all but the worst heat (100+). The trick has been getting the plants to survive spider mite attacks...you'll probably be dealing with fungal diseases further east. They are worth keeping around as long as the plants are healthy and vigorous. Night temps definitely play a role in the fruitset of all varieties. I get good fruitset with highs in the mid 90's as long as the nights are below 70--that's pretty common in the Permian Basin. Last May was really odd--triple digit highs during the day, but it still cooled off to 70 or a little lower at night. Fruitset was poor during that period, but the plants didn't totally shut down. Even some of the larger varieties managed to produce a small crop. Lately I've been wondering about the role humidity plays. My thought has always been that humidity was only an indirect cause of poor fruitset, being that high humidity usually leads to warm nights. The past month we've had near perfect temperatures, but oddly high humidity. Fruit set has been good, but not nearly as great as I would hope considering the consistently good temps. That's probably just me being greedy. Jason

June 17, 2007	#11
FlipTX Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Houston, TX Posts: 271	My Husky Cherry Red set fruit for most of the summer last year. Production did slow down considerably but it didn't come to a complete halt until the plant just became too sickly.

June 17, 2007	#12
Husbear Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Houston Posts: 8	Here in central Houston my Mexico Midget, SunGoldd, and grape maters are still setting some fruit with day time temps of mid 90s and lows of 72. Not as much as when the high temps were in the 80s though. Normally the heat stress and water stress on the plants are what "get" them in mid June. But not as of yet this year. It may be more like wishful thinking but ... I may have to chop them out in a couple of weeks to make way for the fall plants.

July 6, 2007	#13
duajones Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Corpus Christi,Texas Z9 Posts: 1,996	Stupice has set fruit and hasnt dropped a blossom yet. On the other hand, Gary O'Sena has done nothing but drop blossoms. While Stupice is not a cherry type, it appears to set well in heat. Still early though so we will see how it does with the upcoming inferno.