Melitopol cherries

Melitopol cherries are characterized by a rich aroma and taste, balanced sugar and acid content. This is due to the intense influence of the sun in the spring, the presence of deeply humus-rich clay-sandy and sandy soils on alluvial river sediments, characterized by looseness and high water permeability.

Melitopol cherries are grown on the banks of the Molochna River near Melitopol as well as in Melitopol, Yakymiv and Azov districts of Zaporizhia region.

In the second half of XIX century Louis-Henri Philibert brought fruit tree seedlings from Europe to Melitopol, which bacame the beginning of active development of horticulture in the region. In 1887, north of Melitopol, Andriy Korvatsky created a research garden for the selection of fruit varieties from Europe and their adaptation to the local climate. Along with other fruit crops, he planted 20 varieties of cherries.

We find the first mention of Melitopol cherries in the journal “Notes of the Society of Southern Russia” in 1899. In 1912, after the death of Andriy Korvatsky, the garden was nationalized; in 1928 it became the basis for establishing the Research Station, and a year later the Melitopol Research Station was opened there.

In 1932 the station breeding department, headed by Mykhailo Oratovsky, began breeding cherries. He created thousands of hybrid collection, from which he derived 17 varieties.

The technology of growing cherries has been constantly improved in the region. Due to hard work of specialists, it was possible to breed high-yielding varieties of cherries, adapted to local soil and climatic conditions.