I would guess it's the dreaded Brown Rot. Once that starts it moves rather quickly. I had it a few years ago and some of the experts here on GW pointed me to a product called Monterey Fungi Fighter. I was unable to locate that locally (in a very short time that I had to get it applied) so I found a product from Bonide called Infuse that had the same active ingredient. It worked just like they said it would! I want to say it was Harvestman or Fruitnut who had guided me on this one, but they had said you can even use it in a rescue operation. In other words, if you have spotted early signs of Brown Rot you can spray with MFF (or in my case Infuse) and it'll stop the BR and you'll have saved some of the crop anyway. It worked for me. Going forward from that experience, I was much more diligent in making sure I collected and discarded any of the "Mummies" (the shriveled up fruit with the nasty moldy looking spore things, etc) as well a keeping things really clean under the tree. And then being diligent in a spray schedule with regard to applying a Fungicide. Now when I harvest my cherries, one of the last things I do after picking for the day is to go around the underneath of the tree and pick up all the drops or bird pecked ones that I discard so that there's nothing under my tree except for grass. Even if I'm dog tired after a day of harvesting I find the energy to get the drops off the ground and thrown away. I think it really helps. Others may have a different take on your cherry problem, but if it is BR the products noted and keeping a clean area may help out going forward. This post was edited by iowajer on Mon, May 26, 14 at 9:08

I think the sun-starved fruit tends to drop early for lack of adequate energy. I didn't keep up with scab on pears- I actually didn't realize that it can be a season long battle when it's as wet as it was this year. My 2 Boscs are 60% defoliated and dropped pears early though some are still on tree as did Highland which lost most pears too early to be worth anytning. Seckels did the same, but at least they have decent sugar. Bartlett and another unknown Bartlett type, but later, have completely healthy foliage and great fruit. Aurora stayed healthy but fruits not sweet enough. Most of the Honeycrisp apples, where foliage was fine, dropped a bit before ideal ripeness, or would have if I didn't pick them. Jonagold is thinning itself more than I'd like. All other apples were or are fine. I don't care at all about sooty blotch and fly speck.

Thanks for all the kind comments! Since these photos I was able to get a few more migration photos before the rain set in, but kept hoping I could get some more. We spent one weekend at a family reunion in IN, then worked out of town as extras in the Disney movie Secretariat during two very cold, windy weeks (long hours, miserable work, but at least I got to see John Malkovich and Diane Lane). This weekend coming up might have some sun, but I've not seen any migrants for awhile, so our migration action may be over.

This is all the shrub that grew back the last couple of years. I had it hand cut down as far I could, but keeps coming back. Right side of the yard. We still want to leave some there so we have privacy. The shrub had taken the yard over to the white stick. The family (kids of the lady) didn’t do anything in the 50 years she lived in the house. they let their mom live in this house where the windows where so broken they couldn’t be closed. They stayed open about 5 inches even in winter. To cover the issue the children (already in the 40’s we met them at closing) put plastic flowers in front of the window. I would be ashamed letting my mom live in such conditions. Anyways back to the yard ... here is my hubby taking such a crabby shrub out of the ground where I started my Hosta bed. Stones are for a patio we are going to lay this summer :-) Here is a shot of my “woodland” Hosta garden. (Not macht erfinderisch:-)