In the life of a cherry grower, it’s not every day that everything aligns just as you would want them to. However, for fourth generation Stemilt cherry grower Kyle Mathison and his high-altitude “Moon cherries,” this year’s harvest is shaping up exactly the way he would prefer if he could have scripted it.
That’s because tomorrow, Tuesday, July 19th, is a full moon. This is the lunar phase that Mathison prefers to harvest his cherries under, as he finds the extra gravitational pull from the moon boosts his cherry tree’s ability to deliver energy to the growing fruits in the form of carbohydrates. The result is jumbo-sized cherries with higher sugars, acids, and aromatics to deliver a memorable dessert eating experience.
“There’s no better time to harvest cherries than around a full moon,” said Mathison, who has been farming cherries on Stemilt Hill in Wenatchee, WA for more than four decades. “A full moon brings energy with it, and that energy pulls nutrients from the roots of cherry trees right into the fruit. The result is large and firm cherries that are truly world famous. Each cherry explodes with flavor when you bite into it.”
Mathison just started harvesting cherries from his unique Amigos Orchards in Wenatchee, WA located 2,640 feet above sea level and higher, or literally a half mile closer to the moon. These cherries are the latest freshly harvested cherries in Washington State, and though coming off the tree earlier than they typically do, will still take Stemilt’s cherry harvest into early August. In a normal year where Washington cherries start in June, cherry harvest at Amigos would go into September.
In the cherry world, any orchard planted above 1,800 feet is considered high-elevation. Having already surpassed that height, Mathison began planting cherries at even higher elevations in 2002 in order to stretch the availability of Stemilt cherries.
Contact:
Roger Pepperl
Marketing Director
Stemilt Growers