Cherry

Native to the temperate zones in the Northern Hemisphere, cherries are spread in Asia and Europe. The cherry tree is different from the others in its species by its flowers grouped in small corymbs and a small, sweet and smooth fruit with a single pit inside. There are two main types of cherries: The Sour Cherry (used especially for cooking) and the Sweet Cherry (the most common cultivar). Because of their great taste and expensive costs of production, cherries are really expensive all over the world.

There are many types of sweet cherries: “Bing”, “Brooks”, ‘King”, “Quinn Ann” (yellow colored) and as well for sour cherries: ”Evans”, “Nanking”, “Traverse”.

The cherry flower (“sakura” in Chinese) is the national symbol of China and it is celbrated in the “Hanami” festival while Michigan is known as the “Cherry Capital of the World”, hosting the largest Cherry annual Festival on 5th of July.

Besides vitamin C and Iron, the fruit also contains antocayne, a substance with anti-inflammatory effects. Cherry-leaves tea is a traditional cure for renal diseases. Not to mention the large amounts of antioxidants contained which help preventing heart diseases, cancer, diabetes and other metabolic disorders. Sweet cherries are also considered an excellent source of “boron”, a substance that increases bone health.

Today, United States, on average, produces more than 650 million pounds of cherries.