BLAINE LAKE, Sask. – Denise and Chad Timm are used to calls about their U-pick saskatoon orchard but these days they are also fielding calls about when their cherries will be ready.
The couple began planting 750 sour cherry trees in 2001 on their Heavenly Hills Orchard in central Saskatchewan.
They expect them to start bearing fruit next summer.
“There’s not a lot of cherries but a lot of interest,” said Denise.
The Timms planted them to diversify their orchard and extend their fruit growing season. Saskatoons are harvested in summer, while the cherries ripen closer to fall.
Read Also
U.S. farm group supports supply management
U.S. grassroots farm advocacy group pushing new agriculture legislation that would move towards supply management like Canada has for dairy industry
The 1,800-acre farm, which Chad operates with his father, also produces wheat, oats, barley, canaryseed and lentils.
Denise finds similarity in production methods between her half-acre of cherries and four acres of saskatoons. Both can be mechanically hoed and harvested, although they pick their saskatoons by hand to avoid waste.
The tart cherries are excellent for everything but fresh eating, she said.
They are learning as they grow, but to date they have seen few disease and insect problems.
“A lot of this is just guessing,” said Denise.
She looks forward to getting more help from the University of Saskatchewan’s new production manual, available this fall.
Last year, she found black spider mites chewing some of the plant’s leaves. She also wonders if a better windbreak would benefit the new cherry orchard, now lined with sea-buckthorns.
Successive drought years took their toll on the plants, with half of the first planting succumbing to the dry conditions.
They expect to escape harm from early frosts due to their location atop a hill.
The Timms said they started the orchard with saskatoons in 1998 to create extra income and an on-farm job for Denise while also helping pay for their two children’s future college educations.
The family, which employs up to 30 workers, sells fresh and frozen saskatoons and markets them through the Saskatoon Berry Partners marketing co-operative.
Determining who will buy the fruit before planting cherries is a big consideration, said Chad.
“Make sure you have a market first,” he said, noting they are blessed with traffic heading to local lakes and proximity to a major highway.
Chad also advised having sufficient numbers of plants to ensure enough production for the market.
Each plant cost about $2.50. The Timms planted 350 in the first year.
Other costs include irrigation, at $1,000 an acre, needed to improve production and extend the growing season.
The Timms hoe between rows and around plants about twice a season, using the same machines as they use for their saskatoons.
Another option is laying irrigation tape along the cherry rows and mulch over top to keep the weeds down.
“That’s cheaper than hiring someone to hoe it,” said Denise.
