Qin Zhang explains during a WSU field day how he is working to improve the mechanical cherry harvester developed by USDA researcher Donald Peterson more than a decade ago. Geraldine Warner Washington State cherry growers Denny Hayden of Pasco and Bob Harris of Yakima began anticipating mechanical harvesting of fresh sweet cherries more than a decade ago after Dr. Don Peterson, engineer with the U.S. Department of Agriculture in ­Kearneysville, West Virginia, developed a mechanical ­harvester. The harvester has been extensively tested in the state of Washington, but never commercially manufactured. Machine-harvested cherries are stemless. Ethrel is applied to the […]