EVALUATION OF FRUIT CHARACTERISTICS OF 20 SWEET CHERRY CULTIVARS

Fruit characteristics of 20 sweet cherry cultivars were evaluated in D enmark. The early cultivars 'Karesova Rana,' 'Ranna Cherna Edra' and ' Merpet' had a good fruit size for their season, but the fruits were so ft. 'Adriana' was outstanding for low cracking susceptibility. 'Kristi n,' 'Oktavia' and 'Viola' are midseason cultivars with several good ch aracteristics. The late cultivar 'Sunburst' was outstanding for good f ruit size. 'Lapins' had an overall good quality. Of the white cherries 'Flamengo Srim' had the highest cracking resistance and it is suitabl e for mechanical harvest.