If i planted a seed from a cherry in my garden would it grow?

asked my mum this yesterday. she said the tree would proberly grow but woulnt have anythig on it. i live in scotland you see. is it a bush or a tree aswell. i really jsut wana know would one grow in my garden?

If i planted a seed from a cherry in my garden would it grow?
I live in Scotland too and have done this in the past, but have never allowed the tree to get beyond 2 or 3 feet. Cherry stones need to spend a winter in the ground before they will germinate (the frost breaks up the hard stone) but they will grow the following spring. The tree may eventually flower but stone grown trees are never as healthy as specially raised ones and any fruit you get may be poor quality. Also, sweet cherry trees get VERY big before they fruit and birds tend to eat most of the fruit unless you protect it.



If you really want to grow cherries in your garden, get a sour cherry tree (much smaller, and birds don't eat the fruit) from a nursery. The fruit is tasty and can be made into jams etc. but is not usually eaten raw.
Reply:Cherries grow on trees, we used to have two of them in my backyard when i was growing up, they were bith over 20 feet tall.



As for growing, its hard to say. It shoul grow, but there is a reason that trees produce soo many seeds - the odds of any one seed surviving for more thana year or two is not good. Only some will germinate and then some of those will die to to weak root systems, disease etc.



So, theoretically they should grow, but just planting one doesnt give you the best odds of success.



If you want to try, this is what you do:



Cherries are deciduous trees and so their seeds require what is known as cold stratification - they need a simulated winter in order to germinate. If you do not do this, the seed will just sit in the ground until after a real winter stratifies it.



To stratify:



Take the cherry seeds - you should use atleast 10 if you can to increase the odds of success - and place them in a cup of hot water and let them soak for 24 hours. This is called scarrification and allows water to absorb through the hard seed covering and to be absorbed by the inner seed. It helps to replace the water every few hours with fresh hot water.



At first, the seeds will float - once they have been scarified and absorbed water, they will sink to the bottom. While some ofthe one that float may still germinate, some of the floaters will be dead. The best chance of growth is from those that sink.



After 24 hours place the seeds in a bag of peat moss that is moist (moist but not waterlogged) and sprinkle wiht cinnamon. Cinnamon is a natural anti fungal. Seal the bag and place in the refrigerator for 90-120 days.



After this period (you can checkcarefully after about 75 days) you should see that the seeds germinated and small sprouts will be visible.



Remove from the fridge and place each seed in a small pot of soil and water. After a week or so, the new shoot wil emerge fro the soil.



Note: Best time to do this is during the winter, otherwise you sprout them during the wrong time of year and the ymay not survive the first winter without emough growth time.



Also, it will eventually grow fruit, but can sometimes take 10-15 years if not longer for the tree to become mature enough to fruit.



Heres a link on growing trees from seeds:



http://www.bonsaisite.com/germinate.html
Reply:It would be a tree. It would take a while for it to have fruit.
Reply:it should eventually