American Persimmon

Description
Scientific Names: Diospyros virginiana
Common Names: American Persimmon, Common Persimmon, Eastern Persimmon, Florida Persimmon, simmon and possumwood
Plant Type: Slow-growing tree of moderate size found on a wide variety of soils and sites.
Height: Grows to 20 m (66 ft), in well-drained soil.
Native Habitat: Valleys and dry uplands in clearings and mixed forests. It's best development is in the rich bottom lands of the Mississippi River and its tributaries and in coastal river valleys.
Native Range: Common Persimmon  is found from southern Connecticut and Long Island to southern Florida  westward through central Pennsylvania, southern Ohio, southern Indiana, and central Illinois to southeast Iowa and south through eastern Kansas and Oklahoma to the Valley of the Colorado River in Texas. Best growth is in the bottom lands of the Mississippi River Valley.
Conservation Status: NatureServe lists Diospyros virginiana as Critically-Imperiled in Connecticut and Iowa, and Imperiled in New York. Officially the species is listed as Threatened in New Jersey and of Special Concern in Connecticut.
Cultivation: American Persimmon can survive on poor sites, but for best growth and fruit production, give it good soil and plenty of sunlight, and keep it well-watered for the first couple of years. Spraying for insects or diseases normally isn't necessary to get good quality fruit. Because of its potentially deep tap root, a small specimen may be easier to plant. Seeds require about three months of cold moist stratification in order to germinate. If planted in the fall, they should come up the following spring.
Related Species: The only closely related species United States is the Texas Persimmon (Diospyros texana), which is found in central and southern Texas and northern Mexico. His small black fruit is edible when fully ripe, but may stain the mouth, teeth and hands.

The genus name for the American Persimmon means "Fruit of the Gods". This is a reference to the lovely golden-orange fruits that often hang on the tree after the leaves fall in autumn. When they are ripe, these fruits are very sweet. But they must be fully ripe. If you try to eat too quickly, will probably pucker your mouth the bitter taste of tannin. Nevertheless, a ripe fruit is a real treat. Native Americans enjoyed them, and they are a popular food for wild turkey, mocking birds, deer, raccoons, foxes, squirrels, rabbits and other wildlife. They can be made into puddings, preserves, beer, and brandy, and can also be dried for winter food. Most American Persimmon trees are either male or female, but some are self-fertile. The fruits are usually about 1 cm in diameter, but nurseries sell special cultivars that produce more. The size of a crop, especially on wild trees, usually varies from year to year.

A fruit is soft as it matures, and the skin begins to wrinkle. To avoid the competition of flora and fauna, you can choose them for a few days early, just after they begin to soften, and let them ripen on a windowsill. Some people say they do not get ripe until after the first frost, but that's not always true. A self-fertile variety called Meader can produce its first ripe fruits as early as mid-August in warm climates. Besides the fruit-bearing potential, the American Persimmon make a nice mid-sized yard tree. The large drooping leaves give a soft look, and the dark checkered bark of trees provides winter interest. The bell-shaped flowers are pistillate an attractive creamy-yellow, very fragrant, and an excellent nectar source for bees.

A grouping of a number of trees can be a good animal plants. The tree is strong and flexible, growing rapidly, and the deep taproot gives good drought resistance. It can survive in the shade, but grows and fruits best in sun. Seedlings planted in good soil and a sunny location can begin fruiting in about 6-8 years. As wild as effectively distributes its seed, American Persimmon is still fairly common in some areas. But in other regions the species is scarce. A disease called persimmon want (Cephalsporium diospyri) has slain some wild trees in the upper South, and can spread to other areas.

Uses
The fruit is rich in vitamin C. The unripe fruit is astringent. The ripe fruit can be eaten raw, cooked or dried. Molasses can be made from the flesh. A tea can be made from the leaves and roasted seed is used as a coffee substitute. Other popular applications include desserts, such as persimmon cake, persimmon pudding and persimmon candy. The wood is heavy, hard, strong, and very dense grain. The average number of rings per 5.5 cm (14 in each). Density of light-brown bark is 0.79, a 0.028 m³ block weighs about 22 kg. Because of its hardness, smoothness, and even the texture, it is particularly desirable for turnery, plane stocks, shoe lasts, shuttles, and golf club heads. Persimmon is sometimes planted for its edible fruits. Dried fruit is added to baked goods and occasional fermented with hops, corn flour, wheat bran or a kind of beer. The dried, roasted, ground seeds are used as a substitute for coffee. Seeds and fruits are generally low in crude protein, crude fat, calcium and nitrogen but high in tannin and extract. The inner bark and unripe fruit are sometimes used to treat fever, diarrhea and bleeding. Indelible ink is made from fruit. Persimmon is valued as an ornamental because of its hardness, adaptability to a wide range of soils and climates, its glossy leaves, are abundant crop of fruit, and immunity against diseases and insects. It was introduced in Europe. The tree is suitable for erosion control on deeper soils because of its deep roots, but this same property makes it difficult to plant. Persimmon flowers are useful in the production of honey.