Jeonnam Province Promotes Cherry as a New High-Income Crop Popular in Summer

Establishment of Test Sites for Regional Adaptability Trials

[Muan=Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Yoon Jamin] Jeonnam Province is fostering "cherry," a popular summer fruit, as a new income crop.

The Jeonnam Provincial Forest Resources Research Institute announced on the 19th that it has established a cherry tree test site for regional adaptability trials to distribute mountain cultivation-type cherries, an alternative crop responding to climate change, to farm households.

Fifteen varieties including Jirat, Black Pearl, and Schmidt were planted.

Cherries belong to the Rosaceae family, genus Prunus, and are classified as drupe fruits, commonly called Cherry.

With a sweet and sour taste and unique aroma, consumption has steadily increased, leading to a rise in imports.

Domestic cherry imports increased sixteenfold from 987 tons in 2005 to 15,826 tons last year.

As interest in cultivating cherries as an income crop grows, the research institute has started regional adaptability trials by variety to promote and develop cherries as a new income item for Jeonnam forestry workers.

Park Hyunsik, Director of the Environment and Forestry Bureau of Jeonnam Province, said, "We will continue research to discover forest fruit crops and develop varieties that help increase forestry workers' income, not only cherries."

Meanwhile, the Jeonnam Forest Resources Research Institute is also conducting regional adaptability variety selection trials for forest fruits such as astringent persimmon, jujube, and Korean kiwi, as well as research on the patterns of cold damage to astringent persimmons caused by climate change and methods to reduce such damage.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.