<p>There is great demand among sweet cherry (<i>Prunus avium</i> L.) growers for early cultivars because returns tend to be high for fruit that ripen before the seasonal glut. As a result, ripening time is an important breeding target. Unfortunately, many early ripening genotypes are known to abort the embryo during the second phase of rapid pericarp growth. Embryo rescue is a technique developed to prevent the embryo from being lost by extracting it from the immature fruit and culturing in vitro. Important questions remain regarding nutrient media, phytohormones, and the role of developmental stage at rescue. We sought to answer these questions in order to increase the success of embryo rescue in the Washington State University sweet cherry breeding program’s efforts to develop quality early-maturing genotypes. Experiments in 2021 evaluated two types of basal media, Woody Plant Medium (WPM) and Quoirin and Lepoivre (QL), and the presence/absence of the phytohormones 6-benzylaminopurine, indole-3-acetic acid, and kinetin in seven different crosses (families). In these crosses, QL media was generally superior, and phytohormones had an inconsistent effect. Within media types, specific crosses had the largest effects. A second study in 2022 utilized fewer crosses with more individuals and evaluated the effects of media and developmental stage at harvest. Developmental stage had a significant treatment effect, with the later stage (straw phase) having a higher chance of survival. Media type also had an effect, with greater recovery in WPM. Significant cross effects were also observed. In both years, interactions between certain crosses and treatments were also apparent. These preliminary results indicate that while genetic background has a strong influence on survival, the suggested general practice for embryo rescue in sweet cherry is to harvest fruit at the straw phase, and culture the embryos on either QL or WPM without phytohormones.</p>