Grafted American Persimmons

Description

We are again offering selected varieties of Grafted American Persimmons.

For those unfamiliar with our native persimmons we will begin with a general description.

The American Persimmon- Diospyros virginiana was once a common tree in woodlots and fencerows in the Eastern United States. It is the only North American relative of the tropical Ebony family.  It is normally seen as a small to medium sized tree but can under good condition grow to be a large tree. The wood of the Persimmon tree is one of the densest and most crush resistant woods in North America. It was once the choice timber for the wooden heads of golf clubs.

The American Persimmon is a pioneer tree. The large sweet fruit is relished by all kinds of wildlife who basically eat it whole seeds and all. This is the way the fairly large seeds get spread far and wide. Deer, Turkeys, Foxes, Coyotes, Raccoons, Opossums and other common woodland creatures take advantage of the sweet fruits each fall.

Persimmon trees are dioceous meaning male and female flowers are on separate trees. Male trees have male pollen producing producing flowers. Female trees have female nectar producing flowers. Male trees do not produce fruit. Honeybees absolutely love Persimmon flowers. Both male and female trees literally roar with bees during the bloom period. The trees bloom period is only about 10 days but with enough trees a tremendous amount of nectar and pollen are gathered.

The fruit is very astringent when unripe. Many an unknowing soul has been offered an unripe persimmon as a right of initiation to country life. The ripe fruit is soft and sweet. Quite nice really. It  is advisable to take a small taste test of any wild fruit to be sure it is ready before taking a big bight. There is an unfounded belief that Persimmons must be exposed to a hard frost to ripen. This is not entirely true. Some ripen early enough to be good long before cold weather. Most though ripen very late in the season so frosty weather indicates that most fruit will be ripe. There are people in Indiana and North Carolina who raise and process Persimmon pulp for those who want the traditional holiday Persimmon Pies a regional delicacy.

There are other mysteries to our American Persimmon trees. There are two genetically different populations included in this species. Trees which grow roughly along a line north of the Ohio River have 90 chromosomes while trees south of that line have 60 chromosomes. The 90 chromosomes trees tend to produces larger fruit and most named selections are from that population. The southern strain is now beginning to get a little attention and some new selections are being made in that population.

Seedling Persimmon

The Seedling Persimmon is just that, a Persimmon tree grown from a seed. It may be male or female, there is no way to tell until it flowers. The quality of the fruit is unknown if it is a female. These are good trees to plant for bees or wildlife

Early Golden Persimmon

The name gives a good description. Early Golden ripens without the need of a frost. The 1 2/2″ diameter fruit is sweet and non astringent when ripe. The color is golden to orange/red. It is a good early season persimmon

Wabash Persimmon

Wabash is named for the Wabash river where it was discovered. It is a good Persimmon that ripens mid season. It does not need a frost to get sweet

Morris Burton Persimmon

Morris Burton at 1 1/2″ is not one of the biggest Persimmons but is one of the better flavored ones. The fruit ripens through the whole month of October. The tree bears at a young age and produces an abundance of sweet fruit. It does not need a freeze to get sweet.

Prok

Prok is an old favorite variety with large good flavored fruit

H-63-A

Geneva Long

Geneva Long describes the fruit of this unique persimmon. Odd appearance is not the primary reason to grow this one. The fruit is abundant and flavorful

Lehman’s Delight

Lehman’s Delight came from Jerry Lehman’s breeding program. He cross bred some of the very best American Persimmons and selected the most productive and best flavored offspring of those crosses. This was one of his favorites

Yates- Juhl

This is an older variety that has been grown for many years for its large flavorful fruit and heavy bearing qualities. Its name comes from a common occurrence in minor crops. The trees are grown and not labelled. Time passes, names are forgotten, trees rediscovered and given new names. The fruit gets seen by people familiar with the older trees and now it has 2 names or sometimes more. Whatever it is called, it is a great persimmon that should be grown everywhere Persimmons can be grown.