Montmorency Cherry

Prunus cerasus 'Montmorency'

fruit

Montmorency is the benchmark tart pie cherry: bright red skin, pale juicy flesh, and a lively acidity that mellows perfectly with sugar in pies, preserves, and dried snacks. The compact tree is self-fertile, cold-hardy through zone 4, and one of the easiest fruit trees for a northern backyard.

✅ Plant alongside

Good neighbors that attract beneficial insects or deter pests

• Chives — Sulfur compounds discourage aphids and may suppress brown rot pressure
• Daffodils — Spring bulbs around the trunk repel voles and deer
• Comfrey — Deep taproot returns minerals to surface roots in chop-and-drop mulch
• Yarrow — Attracts parasitic wasps that hunt cherry fruit fly and aphids

🛡️ Pest & disease prevention

Proactive ways to stop trouble before it starts — tap a name with an arrow for its full guide

• Cherry fruit fly →

  Hang yellow sticky traps in June to monitor, and apply spinosad as adults emerge; pick up dropped fruit

• Brown rot →

  Prune for airflow, remove mummified fruit from the tree and ground, and harvest cherries promptly before they soften on the branch

• Black knot →

  Cut out swollen black galls 4 in below the knot during the dormant season and burn or bag the prunings off-site

• Birds →

  Drape lightweight bird netting over the canopy 2 weeks before ripening; remove after harvest

🌾 Harvest & storage

Montmorency cherries ripen in late June and early July, turning bright crimson and softening slightly. Pick by hand with the stems on for the longest fridge life, or strip off the stems if you are pitting for pies and freezing immediately. The tart flavor is fully developed when the fruit is dark red rather than orange-red.

🥗 Nutrition & benefits

Roughly 50 calories per 100 g with 1.6 g fiber, 10 mg vitamin C, and 173 mg potassium. Tart cherries are notably rich in anthocyanins (the same pigments in red wine), which research has linked to reduced exercise-induced muscle soreness.

⚠️ Toxicity & safety

Eat the flesh, not the pit. The kernel inside the pit contains amygdalin, a cyanide-releasing compound - discard the pits and never eat or crush the seeds inside.