What is the best cherry tree for making cherry pies?

Montmorency!

For pies, Montmorency is it. They spread well by root and grow close to a clone from seed too.I have around 140 yards of Montmorency cherry trees along my ditch line. Three year old trees will bare fruit, if attached to the mother tree's root system. Few pests bother them. I get fruit every year. I probably have well over 400 Montmorency cherry trees on my farm, counting small ones.






If you get some sour cherry trees, get the pitter/stoner I pictured. It will pit cherries very quickly and save a lot of otherwise hard work. Enterprise is one of the main makers. They are about $140.00 new, but you can buy antique pitters for under $10.00 at auction. We have 3 pitters, so when we have people over to pick, we can make short work of the cherries.


Keith

One you planted 10 years ago.

There are some cherry trees in southeast Alaska, particularly around Haines that look like pie cherries, red and translucent, but they are sweet. Anyone know what they are called?

Cant seem to find that pitter new,,,only used ones on EBay?

Royal Duke

Montmorency cherries make nice cherry bounce too, with honey not sugar.

I do like montmorency but if I was planting it’d be balatons

Those are likely Nanking cherries they are sweeter than sour cherries. Most Nanking cherries are red. The white Nanking cherries are even sweeter.

Keith

Lehmans sells the pitters new.

https://www.lehmans.com/product/old-fashioned-cherry-pitter

Many estate auctions have them.

Shopgoodwill usally has some for sale. Here's one.

https://shopgoodwill.com/item/229310865

Keith