Stir up Sunday

Stir up Sunday

Life Is A Bowl of Cherries

Life Is A Bowl of Cherries

Cherries are thought to have been brought to Italy by the Romans from Asia Minor around 70BC and thence into Britain in the First Century AD.  Legend has it that you can trace the routes of Roman roads by looking for wild cherry trees which sprang up from stones spat out by the marching legionnaires.

By the Middle Ages, cherry stems were being prescribed as a diuretic and an infusion of the bark was used to treat colds and flu whilst the fruit itself was found to alleviate the symptoms of gout and arthritis.  Modern research proves that cherries do indeed contain natural anti-inflammatory agents and also that they are high in melatonin, the hormone which regulates the body’s natural sleep cycle.

Britain’s old cherry orchards were traditionally planted in grassland so that sheep could graze beneath the huge trees to keep the grass down and provide a natural fertilizer.  Unfortunately the sheer size of the trees made them difficult to farm in more modern times as it was impossible to mechanise the process of picking or to net the trees from birds.  Large areas of cherry orchards were grubbed up after the 2nd World War and it is only recently, with the advent of grafting onto dwarf stock, that farming the British cherry has again become viable.

In 2008, Henrietta Green and Food Lovers Britain organised Cherry Aid and National Cherry Day to encourage food writers, chefs, farmers and cherry lovers to join together to try to save the British cherry.  Held this year on July 18th there will be a Cherry Corner at Borough Market with cherry tastings and all sorts of cherry-packed produce for sale.

At Harbour & Jones we are actively promoting local cherries this month, some of which will come from our own trees that we rent from Michael Dallaway in East Sussex.  To rent your own tree go to http://www.rentacherrytree.co.uk

< H&J Home

Previously:

Archived