Expert talks cherries, future

YELLOW BAY - In anticipation of this year's cherry-growing season the Flathead Lake Cherry Growers held its 75th annual grower's meeting Saturday at the Yellow Bay Clubhouse.

Norm Gutzwiler, a third generation orchardist from Washington, spoke to a crowd of more than 60 people about the future of the cherry industry, the reasons for last year's bad season and the latest news on horticultural techniques.

Gutzwiler has been farming for 37 years. He has experience as a field man, horticulturist, crop management specialist, consultant, master cherry grower and as a member of the cherry research committee. He said he got rid of his apples and pears a number of years ago and concentrated solely on growing cherries.

"Sometimes I have good crops and sometimes I have last year," Gutzwiler said commenting on last year's bad cherry season.

One of the major problems last year for cherry growers was that the bloom dates and the harvest dates were so compacted everything was condensed, Gutzwiler said.

"That put a lot of cherries on the market," he said. "We had so many cherries coming into the warehouses, they couldn't package them all."

Gutzwiler said cherries were sitting in storage up to five days and the warehouses were saying "don't pick anymore."

"They were taking hundred and thousands of tons of fruit straight to the dump right after they'd been harvested," Gutzwiler said. "What a shame, such beautiful fruit."

The majority of cherries are grown in Washington, Oregon, California, Montana, Idaho and Utah. But around the world, top cherry-growing countries include Chile, Argentina, Spain and Turkey, Gutzwiler said.

"The cherry industry is something I honestly love," Gutzwiler said. "The fact is they are a great commodity, people love cherries, but when you look worldwide we are producing an awful lot of them."

In recent years, Montana's popularity as a cherry-growing state has made the Pacific Northwest a five-state cherry growing region, instead of a four-state region. Gutzwiler said local growers should take advantage of their newfound position and market Montana cherries to regional stores.

Gutzwiler then transitioned his talk to explain how local growers can better market themselves. He recommended growers take a more proactive and progressive approach and focus on planning and thinking ahead.

"Look into having some banners that say Flathead cherries or Montana cherries. As you start to build this market locally, the demand will come," he said.

Gutzwiler discussed the pros and cons of different varieties of cherries including the Skeena, Bing, Gisela, Lapins and Sweetheart.

"When looking at [growing] a new variety, look how it is going to fit in your micro-climate," Gutzwiler said. "Look how it is going to fit in your market."

Because it is the seller's goal to please consumers, sellers should figure out what consumers are looking for, Gutzwiler said.

The meeting broke for lunch and, following the meal, a question and answer session was held with Gutzwiler. Audience members were able to meet individually with Gutzwiler at the end of the session.

For the past 18 years Gutzwiler has visited the Flathead Valley every few years to educate regional growers on the latest methods and techniques.