While most sour cherry varieties are self-pollinating, self-fertilization is rather the exception with sweet cherries. For a good yield, a sweet cherry tree needs a pollinator variety nearby that blooms at the same time.
Which cherry tree varieties are self-pollinating?
Sweet cherry varieties like Van or Erika are self-pollinating but benefit from a pollinator tree for higher yields. Lapins and Sunburst are also self-pollinating sweet cherries. Most sour cherry varieties, such as morello cherries and morello cherries, are self-pollinating, but Köröser Weichsel requires a pollinator.
General information about the fertilization process
When the ovules in the flower have been fertilized, the flower becomes fruit. To do this, the pollen from a male flower must get onto the stigma of a female flower. In cherry trees, as in other fruit trees, pollen is transmitted by insects, especially bees.
Pollination of the mature stigma does not always lead to fertilization. In self-pollinating varieties, however, pollination of the stigma with pollen from the same flower or the flower of the same tree leads to fertilization. Provided that the male and female fertilization organs are ripe at the same time.
Ensuring fertilization
Even with self-pollinated varieties, cross-pollination in most cases has a positive effect on fruit set and yield. In any case, the ability to self-fertilize does not exclude the possibility of cross-fertilization. The sweet cherries Van or Erika are self-pollinating varieties, but with a suitable pollinator tree they produce consistently higher yields.
The sweet cherry variety Lapins, which comes from Canada, is self-pollinating and is also suitable as a pollinator variety for other cherries. Another well-known self-pollinating sweet cherry variety is Sunburst. Most sour cherry varieties, such as B. Morello cherries, sapphire, morello cherries and many others are self-pollinating. One of the tastiest sour cherry varieties - the Köröser Weichsel - still requires a suitable pollinator, which can also be a sweet cherry variety.
In order to be able to make the right variety combinations if necessary, the suitable pollinator varieties and the flowering time of the variety are specified in the dealers' descriptions. The flowering time information should be observed wherever possible, so that very early and very late flowering varieties are not planted together.
Tips & Tricks
If you have enough space for several cherry trees, you can, for example, order three different cherry trees in a package from an online mail order company (€13.00 on Amazon). The package contains the cherry tree varieties suitable for cross-pollination.
