Bless the Buds and Blossoms 2026 Campaign
Thank you for showing interest in joining our Bless the Buds and Blossoms Campaign. It doesn’t require much, just understanding our situation and sending all the cherry farmers and their families some good energy. And with all that good energy and understanding swirling around the north, it just may turn our farmers' and cherry processors' fortunes around.
Hey, just so you know—Cherry Republic is going to be fine. We have the back-up plans in place to come out in decent shape no matter what the weather tosses us in 2026. I’ll tell you about some of Cherry Republic’s special 2026 cherry plans in future Orchard Reports. No need to waste a bit of worry on Cherry Republic—just do what you always do with us: enjoy.
Here is the issue though: For the last two years, our winters have been just warm enough that the cherry trees bud and blossom a tad earlier in the spring, yet we still have the challenging cold spells in late April and May that freeze the vulnerable early buds and blossoms. Let’s pray for cold these next few weeks, which is thankfully predicted by the weathermen and women, because the colder the winter stays into the spring, the better for the trees to produce blossoms later in May, shortly after the frost season.
For much of the 2026 winter, it has been wonderfully cold and snowy, which has kept our trees happily and safely dormant. Unfortunately, we had a warm several days with a day that reached 61 degrees. We never know exactly how much a few warm days and nights will affect the crop, but there isn’t a farmer or person in the cherry industry who is sleeping soundly right now. If you add a few other challenges beyond frost, like a new pest attacking the cherries, and labor shortages and having lost some national accounts due to the instability of our cherry crops. It all means a downsizing is happening in the cherry industry across the north.
In this challenge, some farmers have shrunken down their cherry orchards. The farm in the photo above is just two miles from my house. He was so intent on pulling his cherry trees, he used two excavators instead of just one. You can see the black patch on the left of the photo where he created a pile of the limbs and burned them.
It isn’t pretty to hear about, but that field will be beautiful this summer and with just half his orchard, this farmer can spend twice as much time with his family.
But it would be nice for this farmer and all farmers to be excited about a sweet and beautiful cherry crop this summer. And just like many of our customers taking a moment to bless the blossoms and buds in spring of 2013, which helped bring on a good crop later that summer, let's all join in Blessing the Blossoms with the trust and belief that the same thing can happen this year.
And while you are blessing those blossoms, take a moment to bless your family, your work, your neighbors, and everyone in your lives. It makes a difference.
Bless you.
Sincerely, all my blessings to you and your family,
Bob Sutherland
