Harvest for Skylar Rae® cherries is finally underway, bringing the sweet, crunchy bi-colored cherries back to the shelves.
“Skylar Rae cherries are special in many ways,” says Sarah Barkley, domestic sales at CMI Orchards. “From their sweet flavor and bite to the story of their discovery, they’re superstars on the shelves.”
The near-perfect growing conditions in the Pacific Northwest produced good eating quality cherries.
While the orchards contended with a ‘flash bloom’—where all the flowers opened up and started their race for pollination at the same time—Barkley says the near-perfect growing conditions in the Pacific Northwest produced good eating quality Skylar Rae cherries.
This cherry variety was first discovered in 2004 by the Toftness family, who found a tree unlike any other in their orchard. The family felt this discovery, following the unimaginable loss of their infant daughter, was a gift from nature honoring their daughter.
This cherry variety was first discovered in 2004 by the Toftness family.
Co-owner of the Skylar Rae brand, and Tip Top cherry variety, Troy Toftness says these cherries continue to grow in popularity and volume by chosen growers in the U.S., plus in Chile and Australia. There are plans to extend to several other countries.
“Our mission when growing these cherries is to put flavor first, which means letting the fruit ripen on the tree until it’s perfect. This lets the cherries soak up as much sunshine as possible and gives them the time they need to develop their flavor,” says Toftness. “This also means sometimes you get a really nice caramel glow on the cherries, an indicator of the sweetness of the fruit.”
For more information:
Ashlyn Lewis
CMI Orchards, LLC
Tel: +1 (509) 888-3434 (office) ext. 112
[email protected]
www.cmiorchards.com
