Cherries
Cherries are drupes, or stone fruits, related to plums and more distantly to peaches and nectarines. They have been enjoyed since the Stone Age-pits were found in several Stone Age caves in Europe. The Romans carried cherries throughout Europe and England along the routes of conquest. Cherries are grown in several regions of the United States, but seventy percent of the cherries produced in the United States come from four states (Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Utah). A cherry is both a tree and its fruit belonging to the family Rosaceae, genus Prunus together with plums, peaches, apricots, almonds and bird cherries. The cherries are member of subgenus Cerasus that can be distinguished from the other genus because its flowers are in small corymbs of several together and the fruit is smooth. The cherries that are chosen for eating belong to Wild Cherry and the Sour Cherry or Morello Cherry, that are used in jam making, cooking and not only. Both of these species originate in Europe and western Asia. It is well known that cherries have lots of health benefits as they contain anthocyanins that are the red pigments in berries that reduce inflammation and pain. More than this, cherries have a great amount of melatonin which is extremely important for the function of the immune system. Sweet cherries that are cultivated especially in California are common in the East and some species are cultivated for their flowers. Cherries are extremely popular all over the world and they are used in jams, fruit salads, ice-cream, juices, or eaten fresh.
