Benton Sweet Cherry Tree

Description

Description

Benton® is the self-pollinating sweet cherry that commercial growers have preferred over Bing — delivering Bing-caliber quality in rich mahogany skin, firm dense garnet flesh, and pure sweet cherry flavor, while solving Bing’s biggest practical limitations: the need for a pollinator tree and vulnerability to late spring frost damage. This Stella cross developed at Washington State University blooms a few days later than Bing, reducing frost risk to the profuse white bloom display, and bears heavy crops on its own without a second variety. Stores up to 5 weeks — far longer than most fresh sweet cherries. Semi-freestone and easy to pit. Mid-June ripening in Zones 5–8.

Preferred Over Bing — Self-Pollinating and Later-Blooming

The commercial grower preference for Benton® over Bing reflects a genuine practical calculus that home orchardists benefit from equally. Bing requires a pollinator; Benton® is self-pollinating — productive with just one tree. Bing blooms early and risks frost damage; Benton® blooms a few days later — a timing advantage that meaningfully reduces the frequency of crop losses from late spring frosts. Same Bing-quality fruit, fewer of Bing’s challenges.

Rich Mahogany Skin, Firm Dense Garnet Flesh — Bing-Caliber Quality

Benton®’s quality matches its Bing-caliber reputation. Large, beautiful fruit with rich mahogany skin and firm, dense, garnet-colored flesh delivers the pure, classic sweet cherry flavor that makes mid-June the most anticipated harvest on the home orchard calendar. Outstanding for fresh eating straight off the tree, excellent in cobblers and pies where the firm flesh holds its structure through baking, and exceptional in preserves where the rich color creates beautiful, deeply flavored jars.

Stores Up to 5 Weeks — Washington State University Stella Cross

The 5-week storage life is genuinely exceptional for a fresh sweet cherry — most sweet cherry varieties need to be consumed or processed within days of harvest. Benton®’s extended storage window gives home orchardists meaningful flexibility in how and when they use the harvest. Developed at Washington State University as a Stella cross, it combines Stella’s self-pollinating trait with the superior fruit quality that WSU cherry breeding has consistently delivered.

Why Growers Choose Benton® Sweet Cherry

• Preferred by commercial growers over Bing — self-fertile with later frost-avoiding bloom
• Bing-caliber quality — rich mahogany skin, firm dense garnet flesh, pure sweet flavor
• Self-pollinating — productive with just one tree, no second variety required
• Stores up to 5 weeks — exceptional keeping quality for a fresh sweet cherry
• Semi-freestone, easy to pit — practical for every fresh and kitchen application
• Washington State University, Stella cross — proven commercial and home orchard pedigree