11 WA Counties, Others, Will Get Cherry Disaster Relief
Growers in 11 WA counties will be able to apply for disaster relief from the USDA over the 2023 cherry crop.
Excessive spring heat shortened the growing season.
In the spring of 2023, much warmer weather than normal caused the cherry harvesting season to be greatly compressed, or shortened. This event, plus growers facing some shortages of pickers, caused large amounts of cherries to be left on trees to rot. They were not able to get all the harvest picked in time.
The USDA announced this week growers in these counties will be eligible to apply for disaster relief funds by way of the USDA Farm Service Agency.
The primary affected 11 counties in WA include Adams, Franklin, Benton, Chelan, Douglas, Grant Kittitas, Klickitat, Okanogan, Yakima, and Walla Walla.
USDA officials said other neighboring counties in Oregon and WA were also eligible. The application deadline for relief is November 14, 2024.
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