I think that every fruit-eating bird within a quarter mile of our place has found the three cherry trees growing on our property, and so far I've witnessed countless mockingbirds, catbirds, bluebirds, robins, sparrows and cardinals flying off with red-ripe cherries in their beaks.

But since each tree produces thousands of cherries, there are plenty of cherries to go around. So I don't feel compelled to discourage the birds from filling up. Besides, as long as birds are on the scene, they're consuming insect pests, too.

Which reminds me, in ancient Greece, cherries were considered to be such an important cash crop they had their own scarecrow-like deity, Hamadryas Kraneia, whose main job was to protect cherries from ravenous birds.

Overall, it's a good arrangement. I feed the birds -- and us -- and the birds help rid the property of insects.

Centuries ago, Europeans first grew wild cherries for food. Commonly known as "bird cherries," these cherries are longer, less round and not nearly as sweet as today's hybrid varieties.

Even so, wild cherries cultivated by ancient Europeans provided folks with as rich a source of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants as today's cherries.

Back then, nothing from cherry trees went to waste. Even the lumber from deceased cherry trees was used for making fine furniture and religious relics.

Today, two distinct types of cherry-producing trees are available: those that produce sweet cherries, and those that produce sour cherries.

I'm not certain why, but birds appear to prefer sour cherries to sweet ones. Cherry-pie connoisseurs prefer the sour ones too, since they make the most flavorful pies.

But most folks prefer the taste of sweet cherries when it comes to eating cherries fresh from a tree.

Growing cherries

Sweet and sour cherries are easy to grow. Spraying for pests isn't necessary, and they don't require pruning.

I started our cherry trees from potted, 2- to 3-year-old saplings purchased from a garden center. Then I transplanted the saplings 25 feet apart in a spot that receives full sun and where soil drains freely.

Depending upon the tree's variety, however, a mature specimen may reach up to 60 feet in height. So plan accordingly.

Another reason why all sour-cherry varieties, and most sweet-cherry varieties, are easy to grow is that they self pollinate. In other words, a single tree will bear fruit without pollen from a second tree.

Cherries are one of the first fruiting trees to bloom during spring. Their white flowers appear in May, and the trees are so attractive in bloom they're sometimes grown solely for their ornamental value.

But in addition to lovely flowers, a mature, self-pollinating cherry will also provide you and the birds with loads of luscious fruit.

This week in the garden

We're freezing a couple pounds of pitted cherries to make a cherry pie on Cherry Pie Day (Feb. 20), a day I enjoy preserved fruits from the previous growing season and a day I look forward to harvesting fresh fruits during the upcoming growing season.

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