Climatch
For growers

Where can I grow cherry?

Prunus avium / P. cerasus · Fruit · Perennial

Cherry is a great fit (80+) on 31.6 million km² (12.2 million sq mi) of land in 107 countries, 31% of it only with irrigation. The most well-suited land is in Texas, United States, Xinjiang, China and Buenos Aires, Argentina. Where it can't grow, it's usually not enough winter chill (90%) and frost-free season too short (4%).

Crop fit≤5075100Uncolored land: won't grow

Tap the map for the score at any spot. Each square is a 28 km (17 mile) grid cell.

Great fit (80+)
31.6M km²(12.2M sq mi)
22% of land
Worth a try (50–79)
4.0M km²(1.5M sq mi)
3% of land
Great fit without irrigation
21.5M km²(8.3M sq mi)
Rain alone is enough
Countries
107
With great-fit land

Regions with the most suitable land

  1. 1

    🇺🇸Texas, United States

    Great fit on 411k km² (159k sq mi) · worth a try on 26k km² (10k sq mi)

    For example Kerrville (100), Pampa (100)

  2. 2

    🇨🇳Xinjiang, China

    Great fit on 369k km² (142k sq mi) · worth a try on 66k km² (25k sq mi) · mostly with irrigation

    For example Aqsu (100), Kashgar (100)

  3. 3

    🇦🇷Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Great fit on 305k km² (118k sq mi)

    For example Mar del Plata (100), Bahía Blanca (100)

  4. 4

    🇺🇸California, United States

    Great fit on 263k km² (102k sq mi) · worth a try on 13k km² (5,000 sq mi)

    For example Oakland (100), Vallejo (100)

  5. 5

    🇨🇳Yunnan, China

    Great fit on 226k km² (87k sq mi) · worth a try on 11k km² (4,400 sq mi)

    For example Kunming (100), Qujing (100)

  6. 6

    🇨🇦Ontario, Canada

    Great fit on 210k km² (81k sq mi) · worth a try on 31k km² (12k sq mi)

    For example Toronto (100), Ottawa (100)

  7. 7

    🇨🇳Inner Mongolia, China

    Great fit on 205k km² (79k sq mi) · worth a try on 26k km² (10k sq mi) · mostly with irrigation

    For example Tongliao (100), Dongsheng (100)

  8. 8

    🇦🇺New South Wales, Australia

    Great fit on 182k km² (70k sq mi) · worth a try on 7,200 km² (2,800 sq mi)

    For example Tamworth (100), Dubbo (100)

  9. 9

    🇦🇺Victoria, Australia

    Great fit on 170k km² (65k sq mi)

    For example Melbourne (100), Geelong (100)

  10. 10

    🇺🇸Missouri, United States

    Great fit on 159k km² (61k sq mi)

    For example Kansas City (100), St. Louis (100)

  11. 11

    🇬🇧England, United Kingdom

    Great fit on 141k km² (54k sq mi) · worth a try on 5,900 km² (2,300 sq mi)

    For example London (100), Birmingham (100)

  12. 12

    🇦🇷Cordoba, Argentina

    Great fit on 124k km² (48k sq mi) · worth a try on 5,300 km² (2,100 sq mi)

    For example Córdoba (100), Río Cuarto (100)

  13. 13

    🇷🇺Volgograd Oblast, Russia

    Great fit on 113k km² (44k sq mi)

    For example Novoanninskiy (100), Yelan’ (100)

  14. 14

    🇯🇵Hokkaido, Japan

    Great fit on 109k km² (42k sq mi) · worth a try on 3,900 km² (1,500 sq mi)

    For example Kitami (100), Abashiri (100)

  15. 15

    🇪🇸Andalusia, Spain

    Great fit on 103k km² (40k sq mi)

    For example Málaga (100), Jerez de la Frontera (100)

Regions are states and provinces, counting land within 75 km of a town. At most three per country, so the list covers the world.

By country

  • 🇺🇸United States4.5M km² (1.8M sq mi) · 82% of its land
  • 🇨🇳China3.8M km² (1.5M sq mi) · 67% of its land
  • 🇷🇺Russia1.6M km² (616k sq mi) · 32% of its land
  • 🇦🇷Argentina978k km² (377k sq mi) · 62% of its land
  • 🇮🇷Iran851k km² (329k sq mi) · 61% of its land
  • 🇹🇷Turkey767k km² (296k sq mi) · 91% of its land
  • 🇺🇦Ukraine614k km² (237k sq mi) · 99% of its land
  • 🇫🇷France577k km² (223k sq mi) · 98% of its land
  • 🇪🇸Spain533k km² (206k sq mi) · 94% of its land
  • 🇦🇺Australia531k km² (205k sq mi) · 66% of its land

Best-suited towns

  1. 100%fit

    Vienna

    🇦🇹 Austria

  2. 100%fit

    Bryansk

    🇷🇺 Bryansk Oblast, Russia

  3. 100%fit

    Sofia

    🇧🇬 Sofia-Capital, Bulgaria

  4. 100%fit

    Oakland

    🇺🇸 California, United States

  5. 100%fit

    Maseru

    🇱🇸 Maseru District, Lesotho

  6. 100%fit

    Marne La Vallée

    🇫🇷 Île-de-France, France

  7. 100%fit

    Tianshui

    🇨🇳 Gansu, China

  8. 100%fit

    Vilnius

    🇱🇹 Lithuania

  9. 100%fit

    Qingdao

    🇨🇳 Shandong, China

  10. 100%fit

    Canberra

    🇦🇺 Australian Capital Territory, Australia

  11. 100%fit

    Minsk

    🇧🇾 Minsk City, Belarus

  12. 100%fit

    Gdańsk

    🇵🇱 Pomerania, Poland

The most comfortable fits among the 2,000 biggest towns, two per region.

What cherry needs

Winter chill (9 winters in 10)
Ideal at least 60 portionsWon't grow below 45 portions
Coldest night of the year (average)
Ideal at least -11°F (-24°C)Won't grow below -20°F (-29°C)
Frost-free days
Ideal at least 150 daysWon't grow below 120 days
Degree days above 50°F (10°C)
Ideal at least 1,440 °F·days (800 °C·days)Won't grow below 900 °F·days (500 °C·days)
Days above 95°F (35°C)
Ideal at most 30 daysWon't grow above 90 days
Yearly rain
Ideal 20–39 in (500–1,000 mm)Won't grow below 12 in (300 mm) or above 71 in (1,800 mm)

Rain near harvest splits sweet cherries. Spring frosts at bloom are the main yield risk.

Sources: Fadón et al. 2020, Chilling and heat requirements of temperate stone fruit trees (Prunus sp.) (Agronomy); FAO ECOCROP: Prunus avium. Ranges not yet reviewed by an agronomist.

What stops it elsewhere

  • Not enough winter chill90%
  • Frost-free season too short4%
  • Winters get too cold3%
  • Not enough summer heat2%

Share of the land scoring under 50, by what holds it back most.

How this map works

Every 28 km square of land is scored 0–100 against the requirements above, using 1991–2020 monthly climate averages with frost, chill and heat estimated by simulating daily weather. Each square is scored with whichever variety fits it best. “With irrigation” ignores rain shortfalls; “Rain-fed only” counts them.

Climate is only part of it: soil, slope, water and markets decide where a crop is actually farmed. Use this to shortlist places, then check them locally.

More fruit