FILE - Ripening cherries will become dark and sweet near Yakima, Washington, on May 22, 2026.
Courtesy of Eric Patrick
Lush Northwest cherries are already coming off trees.
It will be a good harvest as long as it doesn’t rain. Close to picking, warm rain can pool in the divot near the stem, and split the fruit, rendering them worthless.
This year, these sweet cherries have ripened despite frost, wind, and hail, and a major statewide drought.
Once picked, ripe Northwest cherries will be sent to at least 20 different countries this year.
“Canada is our largest export country, and then we also go into Mexico, but then we also go into Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam, China, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, the Philippines, Brazil, Cambodia, even central Australia,” said Eric Patrick, the president of the Northwest Cherry Commission. “We just met with some Australian retailers this last week. They are definitely distributed worldwide.”
Despite all those cherry flights, Patrick said there will be Northwest cherries sold domestically, too. He assured local consumers that there will be big cherries all around this year.
In the Northwest, there’s a lot of nine-and-a-half-row cherries grown. Those are big cherries – over an inch in diameter.
“It depends on what retailer you shop at, what size they have,” Patrick said. “We definitely have some wonderful cherries in North America for sure.”
Chelans, Black Pearls and Coral Champagnes are the varieties that will ripen first. Blush and yellow Rainiers will follow.
Anna King is a reporter with Northwest Public Broadcasting.
This story comes to you from the Northwest News Network, a collaboration between public media organizations in Oregon and Washington.
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