Iwahara Orchard

Hokuto City — where Iwahara Orchard is — is a nature-rich area surrounded by Mt. Yatsugatake, Southern Alps, and Mt. Kinpu mountains, with Mt. Fuji visible to the south. Located in the northwest highland of fruit kingdom Yamanashi, with conditions like clear air, abundant water, day-night temperature differences, long sunshine hours, and little rainfall — judging it as land most suited for fruit cultivation, orchards were opened at several locations within the city.

Representative Mr. Yukihiko Iwahara graduated from Okayama University Faculty of Agriculture Fruit Tree Specialization, and is an expert who has been involved in guiding fruit farmers at the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Fruit Tree Experiment Station and Hiroshima Prefecture Agricultural Cooperative Federation. Starting in 1994 by planting cherry seedlings in Takane-cho Tsutsumi (Minami Kiyosato), Hokuto City — gradually expanding orchards to Kita Kiyosato, European pear orchard, peach orchard, grape orchard, Hakushu district — combining the most optimal items for each land.

Under the slogan "large-grain, high-sugar-content fruits," Iwahara Orchard pursues a production style of pursuing size and quality by reducing fruit numbers. In soil making, diagnosing soil components and leaf/branch growth status, the orchard performs detailed fertilizer design tree by tree, applying in-house blend compost and organic fertilizer. Arranging sunlight and ventilation with pruning and training, also managing pollination, fruit thinning, and watering based on data — aiming for fruits that are big, red, rich, and satisfying to eat.

These initiatives have been evaluated as numerous awards — Agriculture-Raising Young Couple Award, Cherry Top Shipment Award, Mainichi Agricultural Record Award Grand Prix (Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Award), Yamanashi Nichinichi Shimbun & YBS Agriculture Award, National Fruit Tree Technology & Management Contest Award. As a fruit orchard with 30 years of black-figure management record, the orchard also accepts successors, farm manager candidates, and independence aspirants — also putting effort into next-generation training of fruit tree agriculture.

Cherry picking can be enjoyed from mid-June to early July with 40-minute all-you-can-eat plus souvenir — known as a spot where you can do cherry picking the latest in Honshu. From September to December, European pear, apple, and Japanese pear shipping and delivery reach peak — through online shop and direct shipping from producing region, delivering "highland fruits closest to the sun" to nationwide fans.

A producing region of "large-grain fruits" opened at Japan's highest elevation

Iwahara Orchard has orchards at altitudes of 830m and 1,060m at the south foot of Mt. Yatsugatake. Leveraging blessed natural conditions — clear air, pure water, day-night temperature differences, long sunshine hours, and little rainfall — the orchard grows large-grain fruits in an environment said to be "Japan's highest elevation."

The signature is "large-grain cherries" with large grains and high sugar content

Iwahara Orchard's biggest pride is "large-grain cherries." By intentionally limiting fruit numbers and concentrating nutrition into each grain, the orchard pursues size and sweetness that make you involuntarily say "Wow, big!" "Sweet!" By growing in the highland, days until maturation become longer — finishing into cherries with high sugar content.

Multiple varieties — European pears, peaches, grapes, kiwi — for a long sales season

In addition to cherries — European pears (like La France and Aurora), peaches, kiwifruit, prunes, apples, Japanese pears — and going forward, grapes are also planned for full-scale development. Through the annual sales schedule, "seasonal fruits" are delivered without break from early summer to winter.

Yamanashi GAP certification and meticulous cultivation management

Without using chemical fertilizers, with compost, organic fertilizer, and reduced pesticides as basics — Iwahara Orchard has worked on "safe, reassuring agricultural products" and "environment-considerate production." Registered with Yamanashi Prefecture's "Yamanashi GAP Certification System" — cherries and grapes are grown under full rain-shelter cultivation and soil moisture measurement, with scientific management suppressing disease risk while performing high-quality production.