Rain Rain Go Away Say Valley Cherry Growers

Cherry growers in the Yakima Valley are watching the forecasts hoping for dry skies before the harvest expected in the next two to three weeks...earlier than normal this year. Some growers in Mattawa and along the Columbia River have already started picking. Naches grower John Thompson says with the early harvest expected, any rain between now and harvest time could damage his crop. "You can have a cherry crop on the 13th of June and then a rain storm comes in and you won't have one on the 14th of June, it's that quick and it's that final and it can be devastating. This year with our large crop, quality is going to count,” Thompson says his cherries are still a week or two away from harvest; he's hoping the rain will stay away long enough to produce a good crop for the summer months.