STURGEON BAY, Wis. — The Door County commercial cherry harvest is under way.

WBAY-TV reports (http://bit.ly/14s4ML3 ) that big machines have been clamping onto and shaking thousands of trees at Soren's Valhalla Orchards near Sturgeon Bay.

Owner Terry Sorenson says the trees are very heavy — almost too heavy.

Ann Cannon, who's helped with the harvest for three decades, says the big crop makes it harder for the fruit in the middle of the trees to ripen.

The abundance, though, is good news for growers and consumers after losing well over half of last year's crop. Sorenson says prices for frozen products with Door County cherries will go down once this crop is processed and hits the market.

It'll take about three weeks to harvest the entire county, moving north as the cherries ripen.