Cherry season: Short and sweet for Flathead Valley growers

Daily Inter Lake

The cherry harvest shuts down today for most growers on Flathead Lake, closing a season with fruit that was beautiful if not bountiful.

Monson Fruit Co. processed about 1.5 million pounds of fruit, according to field representative Brian Campbell. That compares to about three million pounds last year, he said.

Monson, based in Washington, buys from about 75 percent of local growers, Campbell estimated.

"We hit what we estimated" for production, he said Thursday. "It's a small crop, but the quality is really good. It helps make up for the lack of quantity."

The crop took a freeze in April that interfered with pollination, some growers said.

After that, orchards were blessed with abundant June rains when they were needed and no late-season rains that can split tender fruit.

Harvest began in mid-July.

Campbell said the fruit coming in today will be the last of the company's production this year.

Growers will continue their private sales at the roadside stands that dot Flathead Lake at this time of year.