Prunus avium 'Hedelfingen Riesenkirsche'
A hardy and reliable heritage variety of sweet cherry up to 6m in height, with a neat habit, thought to have originated back in the 18th or 19th century. The green foliage turns to orange and red in autumn. White flowers appear in spring, following by dark red to black fruit in July with skins that resist splitting. Not self-fertile, pollination group 3
| Season | Stem | Flower | Foliage | Fruit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | ||||
| Summer | ||||
| Autumn | ||||
| Winter |
Grow in moderately fertile soil in full sun. Cherries are best suited to fan-training so they can be netted against bird damage and protected from frosts. See sweet cherry cultivation for further advice
Propagate by chip budding or grafting on clonal rootstock for fruit
Train fan-trained trees in spring. Prune established fans and carry out routine pruning on established cherry trees when harvesting the fruits in summer
May be susceptible to cherry blackfly, pear and cherry slugworm and winter moth caterpillar. The fruit can be damaged by spotted wing drosophila and birds
May be susceptible to peach leaf curl, silver leaf, bacterial canker, blossom wilt and honey fungus