Scientists at the James Hutton Institute in Dundee have found success with limited cherry growing in Perthshire and Fife, which has given them hope that Scottish farmers can grow the crop on a bigger, commercial scale. Cherry growing can be profitable in Scotland as the crop can be cultivated there when cherries are not growing anywhere else.
Dr Julie Graham, a cell and molecular science expert at the institute, helped to develop Scotland’s blueberry crop and is now to apply the same principles to establishing cherries in Scottish soil.
A cherry working group will be set up to share best practice and most up-to-date research on the crop.
Dr Graham said cherries would replace traditional raspberry growing in some cases given that farmers in Scotland had suffered the devastating effect of raspberry root rot, which had wiped out crops and destroyed soil health.
She said that the long summer days in Scotland suited the crop very well and that the results were “fantastic.”
And crucially, it can allow crops to be ready during the early autumn period when the southern hemisphere cherries are yet to be harvested.
It is estimated that soft fruit production in Scotland is worth £93m a year with the fertile lands of Perthshire, Fife, Angus and Aberdeenshire offering the richest pickings.
Innovation continues in farms across the country in a bid to expand growing seasons and access new markets at a time when growers face fresh pressure from the introduction of the living wage.
At Castleton Farm near Laurencekirk, Aberdeenshire, frost fighting technology, first trialed in wine producing vineyards is being used to protect blueberry crops being grown all-year round.
It is technology that allows Scottish blueberries to be the only ones on sale during October and November in the world, albeit in small amounts at present.
Meanwhile, other growers are using biomass heaters to warm polytunnels and grow strawberries out of the traditional season.
So-called “novel crops” are also proving successful in some cases.
Peter Thomson, who farms near Blairgowrie, grows aronia - a berry said to have three times the antioxidant of blueberries - for Tesco.
Last week, it was announced that Scotland was on course to become a major producer of the honeyberry, following a successful trial which was assisted by soft food breeders at the James Hutton Institute.
