Every year on July 16th, folks across the globe roll out the red carpet for one of nature’s most charming fruits. That’s right—it’s National Cherry Day, and it deserves a celebration as sweet (and occasionally tart) as the fruit itself. National Cherry Day lands mid-July at the peak of cherry season, and it’s the perfect excuse to get blissfully messy with everything from cherry pies to pit-spitting contests.
Let’s be real: there’s something undeniably blissful about biting into a ripe cherry. The juice dribbles down your chin, your inner child cheers, and your adult self remembers this moment the next time you’re wearing white.
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A Brief (and Juicy) History of Cherries
Cherries have been delighting taste buds for centuries—think Roman emperors snacking on them between power grabs. These little red bombs of flavor date back to at least 300 BCE, when they spread from ancient Turkey (no joke—near a town called Giresun) into Europe and eventually into North America with early settlers.
By the 1600s, cherry trees were blossoming across the colonies, and today, the U.S. grows hundreds of millions of pounds of them every year—thanks in large part to the fertile orchards of Michigan and the Pacific Northwest.
But it wasn’t until the Brits decided in 2008 that cherries needed a proper holiday that National Cherry Day became official. Born in the UK as part of a campaign to support local agriculture, the day has since taken root across the pond, giving Americans yet another delicious reason to celebrate mid-summer with a mouthful of fruit.
Cherry Pies and Pop Culture: A Love Story
Where do we even start? Cherries are a pop culture icon. They’re the star of the American diner dessert scene—forever immortalized in “Twin Peaks,” where Agent Dale Cooper’s obsession with cherry pie became meme-worthy decades before memes were even a thing.
Then there’s Warrant’s 1990 glam rock anthem “Cherry Pie”—a song so aggressively sugary it should come with a dental warning. And don’t forget the vintage appeal of the cherry motif in pin-up fashion, tattoos, slot machines, and basically anything trying to be retro-cool.
From cartoons to cosmetics, cherries symbolize sweetness, youth, rebellion, and seduction all at once. They’re kind of like the James Dean of fruit.
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The Cherry on Top: How to Celebrate National Cherry Day
There’s no wrong way to celebrate National Cherry Day. But here are a few ideas to sweeten your festivities:
- Bake a cherry pie. Or better yet, eat a cherry pie. Extra points for lattice crusts and whipped cream.
- Host a cherry pit spitting contest. Nothing says summer fun like hocking fruit pits across the backyard.
- Mix up a cherry cocktail. Manhattans, cherry mojitos, or even Shirley Temples (don’t judge) all bring cherry cheer.
- Go picking. If you’re lucky enough to live near an orchard, grab a bucket and make a day of it.
- Pop on a cherry-themed playlist. Start with “Cherry Bomb” by The Runaways and let the fruit-fueled rock commence.
Fun Cherry Facts to Drop at Your Next BBQ
- The average cherry tree yields about 7,000 cherries per year. That’s enough for roughly 28 pies—or one very intense snacking session.
- Japan has “hanami,” the cherry blossom viewing festival, which proves that even flowers without fruit can achieve celebrity status.
- George Washington’s “I cannot tell a lie” cherry tree story? Total fiction. But hey, it’s a good metaphor for honesty and fruit-forward landscaping.
National Cherry Day Deserves a Blissful Bite
Whether you’re snacking straight from the stem or enjoying your cherries wrapped in flaky crust and nostalgia, National Cherry Day is a blissful reminder to enjoy life’s small, sweet moments. It’s a day for fruit lovers, pastry chefs, classic rock fans, and backyard daredevils alike. So grab a handful, raise a glass, and celebrate with the kind of joy only cherries—and maybe a well-timed pit-spitting contest—can deliver.
Cherry on, folks.
