Leelanau Township fruit grower Tom Van Pelt is the exception - not the rule - when it comes to the 3-year sweet and tart cherry survey conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Michigan Field Office of the National Agricultural Statistic Service.

He planted 500 tart cherry trees last year, making him one of few to do so between 2003 and 2006.

“It’s in a location that is better for tarts,” said Van Pelt, who has 90 acres of cherries in production. The crops from the new plantings will mature enough to harvest in another six or seven years.

“I have more acreage cleared and will be planting more cherries — except for one spot which is pretty steep. I may talk to one of the wineries to see if they’d like to lease it for grapes. We’re not getting any younger, “ he added.

Survey results show the number of farms growing tart and sweet cherries statewide fell from 2003 to 2006. Farms growing sweets fell from 530 to 470 in the 3-year period. The number of farms growing tarts fell in Michigan by 60 in the same period, from 600 to 540.

In Leelanau, sweet cherry farms dropped from 133 with 4,150 acres in 2003, to 118 with 3,500 acres in 2006. Leelanau tart cherry farms dropped from 131 to 124, with acreage declining from 8,450 to 8,150, in the same time period.

Southwest Michigan, described as Berrien and VanBuren counties, realized the largest drop in the number of sweet cherry farms from a percentage standpoint. While 93 farms were counted in 2003, the 2006 total of 79 represented a 15 percent drop.

The Northwest Michigan district, which includes Antrim, Benzie, Charlevoix, Grand Traverse, Leelanau and Manistee counties, had a 12.9 percent drop in farms growing sweets in the same period, from 302 to 263.

Mason and Oceana Counties accounted for 79 sweet cherry farms, dropping 8 percent from 93 in 2003.

The East district increased by one farm, from 45 to 46, and the total acreage in sweets remained unchanged at 80.

Overall, sweet cherry acreage statewide fell from 9,000 in 2003 to 7,500 last year.

On a “sour” note, the number of farms producing tart cherries statewide has also dropped, the survey said. From 2003 to 2006, 60 growers called in quits, but the number of acres in tarts remained unchanged at 32,000.

The 6-county area continues to have the highest number of tart cherry farms statewide, despite a 6.8 percent decrease in farmsteads over the same 3-year period. There were 284 “tart” farms in Antrim, Charlevoix, Benzie, Grand Traverse, Leelanau and Manistee last year; 305 were counted in ‘03.

Southwest Michigan also realized a drop in the number of farms with 16 growers calling it quits, going from 127 to 111. Interestingly, this region was almost the only area of the state in which the tart acreage increased, rather than decreased in the 3-year window.

This appears to be a trend, according to Nikki Rothwell, director of the Northwest Michigan Horticultural Research Station in Bingham Township.
“Growers are buying up land down there,” said Rothwell, appointed early this year to replace longtime director Jim Nugent. The area includes Allegan, Berrien, Cass, VanBuren and Kalamazoo Counties. “Property is much cheaper there than it is here.”

The number of growers is smaller, but the acreage under their control is growing.

“Unfortunately, this seems to be the way it’s going to be,” Rothwell said, adding that many of the growers there are also processors. “They begin their harvest in the south and move north as the fruit matures. They are vertically integrated … they already own the equipment and can keep their processor busy.”

In a 3-year period, Southwest Michigan increased in tart acreage by 610 — 3,640 to 4,250 or 14.3 percent. Leading the way was VanBuren County, just south of Kalamazoo County, where 350 acres were planted over the past three years. Cass and Kalamzoo Counties more than doubled their accumulative acreage to 450, up from 200 in 2003. This despite the loss of one “farm.”

Despite the trends, Leelanau County — and the Northwest Michigan district — remain undisputed leaders in both tart and sweet cherry acreage. As of 2006, there were 6,200 acres of “sweets” Up North, with 3,500 found on the Leelanau Peninsula.

More than half the state’s tart acreage can be found in northern Michigan. Some 17,350 acres are planted in tarts. Nearly half of these — 8,150 — are here in Leelanau County.