Argentina’s ultra-early cherry project yields promising results in fourth year

Four years after initial planting, an ultra-early cherry project in Jujuy's Temperate Valleys, in Argentina, is beginning to deliver results that could open a new commercial window for the nation’s industry.

Güizzo Frutas Frescas S.A. leads the initiative, while Viviana Curzel, an agricultural engineer and director of the Fruit Growing Research Center within the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences at the National University of Jujuy, provides technical direction.

The trial is taking place at Finca Machuca in Monterrico, Jujuy Province, and includes roughly 2,200 trees of ultra-early-ripening, low-chill varieties.

During the 2026 season, workers harvested the Minnie Royal, Royal Lee, and Royal Lynn varieties, all originating from the Zaiger Genetics breeding program.

Harvesting began in week 39 (late September), confirming the early-season timing the project aims to establish in the area.

In addition to maintaining this early window, the season logged a significant yield increase compared to the project's 2025 harvest.

Key advances also include improved bloom synchronization among the varieties, a crucial factor for the trial's productive development. For quality, the fruit reached 25 to 28 degrees Brix, with good firmness and strong color, predominantly placing in categories 3 and 4 on the CTIFL color chart.

Upcoming challenges for early cherries

The project remains in early evaluation stages. Upcoming objectives focus on boosting productivity for the best-adapted varieties while continuing to refine quality parameters, specifically fruit size.

Currently, researchers are assessing shade cloth installations to speed dormancy induction and determine whether this tool can improve the productive performance of other varieties in the test block.

If these results hold up at commercial scale, the project could mark a new milestone for Argentine fruit growing by advancing the start of the domestic cherry supply to late September.

Integrating this early-producing zone with the country's current growing regions could significantly broaden the commercial marketing window, extending Argentina's cherry season from late September through late February.

*Photos by Güizzo Frutas Frescas S.A.

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