This is a pivotal year for local cherry growers.

The Flathead Lake Cherry Growers cooperative will talk to local growers next month about transitioning to new varieties to make Flathead cherries more competitive with Washington cherries.

In a nutshell, that means ripping out trees that produce the popular Lambert cherries and replacing them — through an incentive program — with new varieties.

This crossroad in the local industry coincides with the final year of cherry trials that have been gathering research on several new varieties of cherries.

Growers will order new trees this summer to replace the Lambert trees, and the trial trees will have a full year of research on the test varieties, explained Pat McGlynn, Montana State University Extension agent for Flathead County.

“This year it will be standing-room-only at the big field day in July,” she said. Growers will be able to see and taste the new varieties and get a close-up look at the trees.

Four years ago, a number of cherry growers from around Flathead Lake approached McGlynn about the challenges facing the industry. The biggest problem was increased head-to-head competition from Washington-grown cherries.

“Now Washington is planting later and at higher elevations, so this will happen more and more,” McGlynn said about the market competition.

More than half of the small-acreage cherry growers in the Flathead belong to the cooperative that takes the cherries to Washington for processing.

In the past, Washington’s cherry harvest finished just as the Flathead cherries were ready. But with a later harvest in Washington, Flathead cherries have at times been refused by an overwhelmed processing facility.

That put the long-term sustainability of the Flathead orchards in question.

In 2009, when the cherry market was saturated, Monson Fruit Co. bought less than half of the cherries from members of the Flathead Valley Cherry Growers and many growers simply left their cherries on the trees.

An advisory group of local cherry growers was then put together and the consensus was that research was needed to test new cherry varieties developed at Washington State University. These new varieties had been created to be larger, firmer and just as delicious as the Flathead Lambert and Lapin varieties, McGlynn said, but the timing needed to be studied.

Later varieties here would help mitigate the processing challenges in Washington, and earlier cherries would give roadside stand owners a leg up in competing with cherries being trucked to the Flathead from the West Coast. Firmer cherries would be better for international packaging and transport.

In 2010 six research plots were established on growers’ orchards around Flathead Lake. An organic plot was planted in 2011 at another local orchard.

Taste is paramount to determining which new varieties to plant, McGlynn said.

“It is agreed that producing a larger cherry without the flavor that the Flathead is known for will not meet the criteria set by the advisory committee,” she pointed out.

All of the test varieties have produced exceptionally well and have proven to be winter-hardy, tolerant of Montana’s high soil pH level and quick to establish.

Here’s a synopsis of the new varieties tested in the trials:

v Glory — This was a late entry to the study, added in 2011. This will be the first year the Glory trees will produce fruit.

v Hudson — This is also the first year for the Hudsons to produce fruit in the local trials; it’s a late, crack-resistant variety developed in New York.

v Santina — These are proving to be a large, tasty, fast-growing early cherry.

v Attika — They’re a standout for size and firmness, and the cherries can remain on the tree for more than a week and a half once ripe, which would accommodate a later harvest and give growers more flexibility.

v Pinedale Ruby — This variety is a heavy producer and was the latest of the trial cherries to be picked. It matures about 10 days later than Lapins. The trees are heavily branched and may be very adaptable to the pedestrian orchard style of pruning.

v Skeena — A favorite for flavor and color. Size will be more accurately determined during this summer’s growing season. Harvest is about four to five days after Lapins.

v Regina — These haven’t proven to be as vigorous or productive under Montana conditions, though they flourish in Washington. The timing is about the same as Lapins.

Growers involved in the trials have now taken over the management of the research plots, McGlynn said. They’ll continue to evaluate and share the outcomes of the test varieties with other growers for a couple of years.

The goal of the project was to identify at least two varieties to recommend to Flathead cherry growers interested in changing out some of their Lamberts to later varieties by 2014.

With about 1,000 orchards and 150 growers in the Flathead, McGlynn is wondering if there will be enough wholesale trees to accommodate local growers who want to switch to new varieties, especially if they’re all seeking the same variety.

Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by email at lhintze@dailyinterlake.com.