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Fruits · Tree

Growing cherry

Prunus avium · also called gilasSweet cherry is a temperate tree fruit of the cold Himalayan hills, grown mostly in the Kashmir valley. It needs long, cold winters and is one of the first fruits picked each summer.

Temperate Himalaya: Kashmir valley, Shimla, Kullu, Uttarakhand hills

Our team has checked this guide against the sources at the end of the page.Includes AI suggestions where no published guide covers a detail
Ripe red sweet cherries hanging on a cherry tree
Photo: Gerda Arendt · CC0

At a glance

Cherry in the Temperate Himalaya

  • Season

    Picked in May and June3

  • Sowing to last picking

    Fruit ripens about two months after full bloom, by variety. A grafted tree starts bearing in about its fourth or fifth year and bears for many years.

    No published guide covers this for the Temperate Himalaya, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

  • Plant out

    January to March3

Across India

When to sow it

Twelve growing regions, January to December. Your region comes first.

Wait until January

The next sowing here is January to March.

  • Transplant
  • Harvest
  • Today
  • Not suited here
Temperate HimalayaKashmir valley, Shimla, KulluSub-tropical foothillsJammu, Kangra, DehradunNot suited hereCold desertLadakh, Lahaul and SpitiNot suited here
Compare all 12 regions
Cold desertLadakh, Lahaul and SpitiNot suited hereSub-tropical foothillsJammu, Kangra, DehradunNot suited hereNorth-west plainsPunjab, Haryana, DelhiNot suited hereGangetic plainseastern Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal plainsNot suited hereNorth-east hills and valleysAssam, Meghalaya, SikkimNot suited hereArid westRajasthan, Kutch, north GujaratNot suited hereCentral plateauMadhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, VidarbhaNot suited hereDeccan plateauinterior Maharashtra, Telangana, north KarnatakaNot suited hereSouth interiorBengaluru, Mysuru, interior Tamil NaduNot suited hereWest coastKerala, Goa, KonkanNot suited hereEast coastcoastal Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, coastal AndhraNot suited here
Today
See the dates as a table
RegionSowNurseryTransplantHarvest
Temperate HimalayaJanuary to MarchMay to June
Cold desertNot suited here
Sub-tropical foothillsNot suited here
North-west plainsNot suited here
Gangetic plainsNot suited here
North-east hills and valleysNot suited here
Arid westNot suited here
Central plateauNot suited here
Deccan plateauNot suited here
South interiorNot suited here
West coastNot suited here
East coastNot suited here

From seed to harvest

One season, day by day

Days from sowing

  1. Before sowing

    Farmyard manure mixed with top soil

    35 to 40 kg per pit · Pit filling, a month before planting

    Mycorrhiza culture, or a basket of soil from an old cherry orchard

    50 g per pit · At planting

    Neem cake

    100 kg per acre · The source gives it at planting to reduce borer damage and soil-borne disease · At planting

    Farmyard manure

    10 to 20 kg per plant · Apply in December · Trees 1 to 3 years old

    Farmyard manure

    25 to 35 kg per plant · Apply in December · Trees 4 to 6 years old

    Farmyard manure

    35 to 50 kg per plant · Apply in December · Trees 7 to 9 years old

    Farmyard manure

    60 kg per plant · Apply in December · Trees 10 years and older

    Green manure crops (bean, pea, red clover or white clover)2

    Grow in the basins to improve soil texture and fertility · In the tree basins

  2. Day 0

    Sow

  3. Day 20

    Seeds come up1,2,3

  4. Day 55 to 75

    Last pickingNo published guide covers this for the Temperate Himalaya, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

  5. Day 365 to 730

    Transplant2,3

Never let cherry trees run dry or stand in water. Water little and often rather than heavily, keep the trunk and crown dry, and drain wet spots. Bud burst and flowering, and fruit development, are the stages that need water most. Drip is the preferred method.2,3

What it needs

Soil, sun and warmth

  • Soil pH3,2

    6 to 7.5

    Deep sandy loam rich in organic matter; loam and clay loam also suit. The soil must drain well, since cherry roots and collars rot in wet, waterlogged ground.

  • Sunlight3Part of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.

    Full sun. Lay the orchard out so the trees face the sun.

  • TemperatureNo published guide covers this for the Temperate Himalaya, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

    Grows best at 15 to 25 °C

    Takes hard frost.

    Monthly temperatures for the Temperate Himalaya aren't in the library yet.

Water and feeding

Watering2,3

Never let cherry trees run dry or stand in water. Water little and often rather than heavily, keep the trunk and crown dry, and drain wet spots. Bud burst and flowering, and fruit development, are the stages that need water most. Drip is the preferred method.

Weeding2,3

Keep the tree basin clean by hand weeding. A mulch of dry grass or hay laid in April keeps weeds down. Bean, pea or clover grown in the basins smothers weeds, and slashing or mowing keeps the strips between rows in check.

WhenWhatHow muchHow
Pit filling, a month before plantingFarmyard manure mixed with top soil35 to 40 kg per pit
At plantingMycorrhiza culture, or a basket of soil from an old cherry orchard50 g per pit
At plantingNeem cake100 kg per acreThe source gives it at planting to reduce borer damage and soil-borne disease
Trees 1 to 3 years oldFarmyard manure10 to 20 kg per plantApply in December
Trees 4 to 6 years oldFarmyard manure25 to 35 kg per plantApply in December
Trees 7 to 9 years oldFarmyard manure35 to 50 kg per plantApply in December
Trees 10 years and olderFarmyard manure60 kg per plantApply in December
In the tree basinsGreen manure crops (bean, pea, red clover or white clover)Grow in the basins to improve soil texture and fertility

Sources2

Varieties and yield

Typical rangeNo published guide covers this for the Temperate Himalaya, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

15 to 30 kg a tree

Yields vary with the plot, the seed and the season.

Varieties grown here3

  • Bigarreau Noir Grossa

    Recommended for Jammu and Kashmir.

  • Bigarreau Napoleon

    Recommended for Jammu and Kashmir.

  • Guigne Noir Hative

    Recommended for Jammu and Kashmir.

  • Early Purple Black Heart and Black Heart

    Recommended for Jammu and Kashmir; Black Heart is also listed for the Uttarakhand hills.

  • Guigne Pourpre Precoce

    Recommended for Jammu and Kashmir.

  • CITH-Cherry-1 and CITH-Cherry-2

    ICAR-CITH Srinagar selections recommended for Jammu and Kashmir.

  • Bing, Lapins and Stella

    Recommended for Jammu and Kashmir; also used as pollinisers.

  • White Heart, Lambert, Van, Black Tartarian and Napoleon White

    Recommended for Himachal Pradesh. Stella is also listed there.

  • Pink Early, Early Rivers and Black Republican

    Recommended for Himachal Pradesh.

  • Governor's Wood and Bedford Prolific

    Listed for the Uttar Pradesh hills, now Uttarakhand.

Good neighbours2

Grows well with

Keep it away from

Pests and diseases2

Organic and cultural controls only.

  • Pest

    Stem borer and round-headed borer

    Signs

    Large exit holes in the trunk and main branches, with borings at the base of the tree. Branches wilt, dry and die back.

    What to do

    • Clean out the borer holes with a flexible wire and plug them with mud
    • Cover exposed parts of the stem with dry grass or gunny bag, renewed each month from March to October
    • Spray neem seed kernel extract

    Prevention

    • Keep trees vigorous and free of wounds, winter injury and cankers

  • Pest

    Shot hole and pin hole borer

    What to do

    • Prune out infested branches
    • Remove severely infested trees
    • Burn or remove all infested wood from the orchard before the growing season
    • Do not keep pruned limbs or woodpiles near the orchard, since beetles emerge from them

    Prevention

    • Keep trees sound with enough water, balanced feeding and protection from sunburn

  • Pest

    Aphids

    Signs

    Dense colonies on young shoots and leaves cause wilting, slow growth, yellow spots and sticky honeydew.

    What to do

    • Yellow sticky traps, 4 to 5 an acre
    • Conserve ladybird beetles, lacewings and hoverflies
    • Spray neem seed kernel extract

  • Pest

    Hairy caterpillar (Indian gypsy moth, Kashmir willow defoliator)

    Signs

    Caterpillars feed in groups and strip the leaves.

    What to do

    • Collect and destroy egg masses and young caterpillars
    • Tie sacking (burlap) bands around the trunks and collect and destroy the caterpillars and pupae under them from May to the end of June

  • Pest

    Chaffer and defoliating beetles

    Signs

    Beetles eat the leaves at night.

    What to do

    • Shake young, non-bearing trees over a cloth at dusk and destroy the beetles
    • A light trap, 1 an acre, run from 6 to 10 pm

    Prevention

    • Keep trees well fed and free of water stress

  • Pest

    Root borer

    What to do

    • Collect and destroy the grubs while preparing the tree basins

    Prevention

    • Do not grow okra or other mallow-family crops in sequence with cherry

  • Disease

    Leaf spot (Cercospora)

    Signs

    Brown spots with reddish-brown edges on both sides of the leaf; badly hit leaves look scorched. Worse on stressed trees in still air.

    What to do

    • Remove and destroy infected leaves

  • Disease

    Shot hole (Coryneum blight)

    Signs

    Small red spots on young leaves turn purple with pale centres, then drop out and leave holes. Purple-red spots also form on the fruit.

    What to do

    • Prune out infected shoots as soon as they show
    • After leaf fall, prune out infected buds and twigs
    • Keep the orchard clean

    Prevention

    • Avoid overhead sprinklers, or keep them low so the leaves stay dry

  • Disease

    Bacterial gummosis (canker)

    Signs

    Cankers on twigs, at bud bases, at spurs and in pruning wounds ooze amber gum. Trees 2 to 8 years old are hit most.

    What to do

    • Avoid stress and wounds to the trees

    Prevention

    • Choose a variety and rootstock that suit the site

  • Disease

    Silver leaf

    Signs

    Leaves take on a silvery sheen, branches die back, and cut wood shows a brown stain.

    What to do

    • Prune at the first sign of silvering, cutting back into healthy wood
    • Seal pruning cuts wider than 1.5 cm
    • Remove and burn or bury all infected branches, leaves and twigs

  • Disease

    White root rot

    Signs

    Yellow leaves, shrivelled fruit and little new growth; white cottony growth covers the feeder roots. Wet, waterlogged soil favours it.

    What to do

    • Uproot and dispose of infected trees and any infected neighbours
    • Remove as many root pieces as possible and trench around the site
    • Keep water from running off the infected site to healthy trees

  • Disease

    Collar and root rot

    Signs

    Trees wilt and collapse with the first warm spring weather, the dry leaves staying on; milder attacks cause slow growth and early leaf fall. Cool, wet soil favours it.

    What to do

    • Water little and often, and keep sprinkler water off the trunk and crown

    Prevention

    • Plant in well-drained soil, on raised berms where drainage is poor
    • Avoid sites with a history of root and crown rot

  • Disease

    Powdery mildew

    Signs

    Pale round patches on leaves inside the canopy turn powdery; shoots may be distorted.

    Prevention

    • Space trees so air moves through the canopy

  • Disease

    Prunus necrotic ringspot virus

    Signs

    Yellowing, dead patches, misshapen leaves and stunting.

    Prevention

    • Plant only nursery stock tested free of viruses

Seed and the season's end

Saving seed1Part of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.

Cherry does not come true from seed, so seed is saved only to raise rootstock seedlings. Take it from fully ripe fruit of healthy, vigorous, high-yielding trees.

Cleaning the seed

Wash the seed clean in water and dry it in the shade.

Keep dry seed in airtight containers in a cool, dry place; cherry seed keeps for 1 to 3 years. It needs moist chilling (stratification) before it will germinate.

After the last pickingNo published guide covers this for the Temperate Himalaya, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

Cherry is a perennial, so nothing is cleared after the harvest. After leaf fall, rake up the leaves and fallen fruit and compost them, then prune in the dormant season. Burn wood cut out for borers or silver leaf.

Rake up fallen leaves and fruit after leaf fall and compost them in a pit away from the trees. Burn wood cut out for borers, silver leaf or canker rather than leaving it near the orchard.

Rotation

When an old orchard is removed, grow a few seasons of legumes, fodder or vegetables before planting stone fruit again, and do not set new trees back into the old pits.

Sources

Where this comes from

Our team has checked this guide against the sources at the end of the page.Reviewed by our team on 13 November 2026.

These published guides are the sources. Where none of them covers a detail for this region, the page shows an AI suggestion and labels it.

  1. 1Package of practices for fruit crops 2020 (nursery raising)Directorate of Extension, SKUAST-JammuRead the source
  2. 2AESA based IPM package: cherryDirectorate of Plant Protection, Quarantine and Storage, Faridabad, and National Institute of Plant Health Management, Hyderabad (Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare)Read the source
  3. 3Detailed project report, model template for NHB Scheme No. 1: cherryNational Horticulture BoardRead the source

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