Black Tartarian Cherry Tree

Description

Premium Black Tartarian Cherry Tree (Prunus avium 'Black Tartarian') is a beloved classic in home orchards, famous for its vigorous growth and abundant production of juicy, dark, heart-shaped cherries. This variety has been a garden staple for generations, prized for its reliable performance and rich, sweet flavor profile. Starting your orchard journey with a 1-2 ft. starter tree is an excellent investment; by allowing the young tree to establish its root system directly in your garden's soil, you ensure it develops a deep, native-anchored foundation. This early establishment period is critical for producing the robust, healthy canopy needed to support heavy annual yields and provides the resilience required to thrive for years to come.

Growth Rate & Habit

The Black Tartarian is a notably vigorous, upright grower that is relatively easy to train into a balanced, spreading canopy. It is well-regarded for its early and consistent bearing habits, often producing fruit at a younger age than many other sweet cherry cultivars. The foliage is a deep, healthy green, and the tree maintains a tidy, manageable shape that fits perfectly into suburban backyards or larger orchard rows. Annual pruning in late winter is highly recommended to encourage optimal fruit size and ensure healthy airflow through the branches.

Harvest & Fruit Quality

Black Tartarian cherries are celebrated for their deep, near-black color, thin skin, and remarkably sweet, flavorful flesh. They are widely considered "dessert quality"—perfect for fresh eating, baking, or preserving. Because the tree is not self-fertile, it is recommended to plant it near another compatible sweet cherry variety (such as Stella) to ensure optimal cross-pollination and a heavy, consistent harvest every summer.

Watering and Feeding

Consistency is key for your starter tree's establishment. Keep the root zone evenly moist during the active growing season, providing a deep, deliberate soak once a week—this is far more effective than frequent, shallow surface watering and encourages deeper root penetration. Apply a balanced, organic fruit tree fertilizer in early spring as the buds begin to swell, providing the foundational nutrients required to support the tree’s rapid growth and ensure a successful, high-quality fruit set.

Light & Hardiness

To produce maximum sweetness and overall tree vitality, place your Black Tartarian Cherry in a location that receives full sun—aim for at least 6 to 8 hours of direct, unobstructed sunlight daily. This is critical for both the health of the tree and the sugar concentration of the fruit. Reliably hardy in USDA Zones 5-8, this cultivar is a resilient, cold-hardy performer that thrives in environments with a distinct winter dormancy period, returning with renewed, heavy-bearing energy each spring.