Persimmon |
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An attractive (and underused!) small to medium sized deciduous tree with a broad rounded crown & nice branching habit that looks good even in the winter, fragrant yellow-green urn-shaped flowers (female Ύ borne singly, male ½ borne in clusters of 3) attracts multiple pollinators, excellent source of nectar for honeybees, deliciously sweet & spicy orange to purple fruits (huge berries about 1 across!) with a waxy bloom appear on female trees, fruits soften & ripen after the first hard frost but until then are loaded with tannins & are extremely (!!!) astringent, simple 3-6 long dark green glossy leaves turn red to orange to gold to purple in the fall (kind of variable!), fruits hang on after the leaves drop in the fall creating a terrific look, eventually fruit falls to the ground where it is eagerly scavenged by wildlife (raccoons, mockingbirds, wild turkey, bear, etc ), mature trees develop thick bark with a distinctive alligator-like pattern of charcoal gray scaly blocks, trees begin flowering when 5 to 7 years old, best transplanted when young mature plants develop a very deep root system which make them very tolerant of a whole host of bad conditions (drought, flood, poor soil, shade, wind) though they grow best in fertile soil, very dense wood, fruit makes a great jam, host plant to the amazing Luna Moth caterpillar (Actias luna), suitable for bonsai (!). Our plants this year are 2 year old plants - about 8-10 tall. Since they come in both male & female plants its best to get a couple to ensure you get a female for fruit set (our plants are not old enough to be sexed yet).
30-50 tall & 15-25' wide
Plant Hardiness Zones: 5a-9b
Tree
Native Range: e. MA, s. CT, se NY, NJ & s. PA, west to e. NE & south to FL & e. TX. Rare in CT, NY
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