Cherries ripe for success

Cherries are popular for Christmas dishes - and while most make their way from the South Island where cool conditions suit their growth - locals are trying their own methods of producing the sweet, red, juicy fruit in the Western Bay.
While not the first people to grow cherries in the Western Bay, Sandy and Mark Coley have found that the fruit suits their property and their lifestyle - and they've created their own process for growing the trees.
They bought the plants of a local who had difficulty with setting fruit in Katikati.
"It's suggested that they need 1000 to 1500 hours of chill or 7 degrees celsius or less, for three months during winter," says Mark.
With varieties Lapin and Stella and some Ranier, he's using a different technique in growing the popular Christmas fruit.
The couple thought about growing cherries at their property after attempts with flowers and avocados were not economically viable.
"I remember seeing a television programme which showed a method of growing the trees," says Mark. "However, I've modified the process a tad."
Mark's cherries trees are not planted in the ground. Instead, they sit in bags about 1/2 a metre above ground on a platform "It's called fertigating them, it's a root restricting system," he says.
Mark controls the trees intake of water and a local organic certified liquid fertiliser. "The trees are entirely dependent on what I give them, so if the feeding system stops, they will fade," says Mark. "At the moment they're really lush and healthy without using nasty chemicals."
Challenges in growing cherries include rain and birds. Both were solved by placing the plants inside a 600sq m greenhouse with netting over the entire crop. Mark also has a trusty cat for "bird control".
Also, a lot of management or "manicuring" is required. "We don't want tree growth but fruit numbers and size, so the tops are tipped."
Some varieties fruit earlier than others, and the couple's 83 mature trees (five years old) began producing berries from late November. "We've programmed them to ripen early by manipulating the flower," says Mark.
Fruit set in autumn - when cool temperature is essential - is also important, so the couple move their plants to a chill-burdened gulley. "The place is disastrous for avocados and kiwifruit because of frost, so the logical step was to grow something like this," says Sandy.
While a clever form of utilising their large greenhouse, it's also a way to live off their land. "When we came here from Auckland we wanted to live off the land, we both have jobs now but we want the property to be productive," says Sandy.
Mark spends most nights after work in the greenhouse tending to the cherries. Sandy has come on board to pick and sell the fruit. "We've always tried to make this a lifestyle block - and we've done our research on cherries."
Mark says the venture came from a sequence of opportunities and he wanted to thank other local cherry growers for their support. "In the back of my mind I've always liked the thought of growing fruit trees because they're easy to manage."
The couple have 220 grafts growing outside to be productive trees next year.
But for now, the couple have begun selling their first crop, named "Matariki Cherries' at Katikati and Waihi Beach markets, to customers this Christmas.
The name has a spiritual significance for Mark and Sandy says that Matariki in Maori means "new beginnings".