Planting Yates American Persimmon. 1.17.15

Yates Persimmon from Burnt Ridge Nursery.  1.17.15

Persimmon Roots in Tree Pot.  1.17.15

Yates Persimmon.  1.17.15

 Yesterday there was a box by the garage door.  This"Yates" persimmon sapling was in the box.

Things like this keep me going through the winter.  I've been looking forward to planting this tree.

It's a nice size, about 2 foot tall.  When I emailed Burnt Ridge Nursery to ask about them, they said their few remaining specimens were 1 to 2 foot.  Nice it's at the high end of that range.

In the bottomless, side-ridged narrow tree pot, the roots grew straight downward.  None were winding around.  I read that persimmons are difficult to transplant due to lack of a lot of fibrous roots.  This method of growing saplings is said to result in a much more transplantable specimen.  Even so, small specimens are more likely to result in success, so it's hard to find very big persimmon trees to plant.

Persimmons have black roots.  This was no exception.

Planted, and in wire cage.  More protection will be needed - I should prune some of the lower branches and fit a hardware cloth sleeve over the tree.  But it's raining and raining and raining, so I went inside.

Not good to plant trees in the rain.  I wanted to get it into the ground as quickly as possible, so compromised.  The fill soil was not too clumpy, and I think it is OK.

Yates is also call Juhl.  This variety is reported as, no male needed to produce fruit (parthenocarpic), much as many of the Asian persimmons are.  Also fairly large, and early. 

I think I'm nostalgic for some of the natural aspects of my growing up in Southern Illinois.  Pawpaws, American Linden, and now American Persimmon. 

One more photo added 1.18.15.  I pruned the side branches to a single whip.  Minimal loss of stored carbohydrates by doing that now, before sap flows up from roots.  The lower branches would need pruning to make a single leader.  I tied it upright.  I surrounded with hardware cloth for vole protection.  I surrounded with a larger cage for deer protection.  I think persimmons need neither, but prefer not to take a chance on an anomalous or taste-testing herbivore.  The newspaper mulch is crumpled so it won't lie flat and form a barrier.  It looks bad but there is no one but me to see it.  In Spring, it will be covered with a  nicer looking grass clipping mulch.  

Yates Persimmon, pruned, protected  1.18.15

Image from Vintageprintable.com

Hot weather. Ginkgo. Persimmons. Watering with bucket / hole method. 6.30.17

Ginkgo Tree, 19 years from seed.  6.29.17

Persimmon "Nikita's Gift".   Planted 2013.  6.29.17

 I just learned about the "hole in the bucket" watering method last year.  It's probably been around for a while.  Drill one or two quarter-inch holes in the bottom of a 5-gallon bucket.  Sit the bucket by a tree, fill with water, let it drain, move the bucket to the other side, do it again.  This method ensures about 10 gallons with each watering, avoids overwatering or underwatering.  Smaller trees, I fill once and water every few days.  Medium size trees, I fill twice and water once weekly, while somewhat larger trees I fill twice and water once weekly.  If it isn't hot, I space it out further. 

I found that with my water pressure, two quarter-inch holes work OK.

Top photo is a ginkgo tree that I moved here in 2012 from the seedlings that I started in 1998.  It had a slow start due to initial bad location but has taken off and is becoming handsome.

The rest are persimmons.  Saijo is done blooming.  I can see the start of fruits forming in the flowers.  Nikita's gift is just a little behind Saijo.  With a few 100 degree, dry, days, the flowers are brown.  I don't know if that matters for parthenocarpic (bear fruit without pollination) persimmons.   Yates is the third to bloom, and is an American Persimmon.  Yates was smaller and I planted a year or two later compared to the others, but has caught up in size.  There are a few flowers, just blooming, also petals looking singed from the heat.  Yates is sold as parthenocarpic as well.  

At this time of year, new persimmon branches are very droopy.  That puts them in range of deer browsing.  I widened the deer cages.  The ultimate goal is, trees tall enough that I can eliminate the cages for easier care and mowing.  Picking might need a ladder and good health insurance,  or a fruit picking device on a pole, but maintenance will be easier.

Persimmon "Saijo".   Planted 2013.  6.29.17

Deer browsing has been significant this year, but so far these persimmon cages are helping.  I expect to see a little damage at some point, but hoping it's minimal.

Yates Persimmon Flower.  6.29.17

Yates American Persimmon.  Planted 2014?   6.29.17

Persimmon Progress. 7.10.17

Developing Yates American Persimmon.  7.10.17

Developing Nikita's Gift Hybrid Asian:American Persimmon.  7.10.17

 Persimmons are developing nicely.  If the Yates continue to grow and produce fruit, they will be my first for this tree and for any American Persimmon.  Yates apparently does not need a male pollenizer, and will therefore be seedless.  This is a 4 year old tree.

Nikita's Gift and Saijo have a couple of dozen fruits each, fine for 5 year old trees.

Developing Saijo Persimmons.  7.10 17

I'm excited to see persimmons forming.   I'm trying to decide if some need thinning, due to several fruits on the same twigs.  They might do better if they are further apart.

I've tried tying some persimmon branches to guide them, but they are so brittle they break off.  One of the Chocolate Persimmon grafts also did that.  I had tied the little branch to another one to guide it, and the wind broke it.  Fortunately, there is a second Chocolate persimmon graft that is OK.

Prairie Star Persimmon Sapling.  7.10.17

Prairie Star American Persimmon has had a series of unfortunate events over it's young life, now in its 3rd leaf.  It was eaten off by rabbits, twice.  It was bombarded with hail, killing most of the branches.  Now it looks OK, with a good leader and a secondary in case something happens to the main one.  Based on Yates, and assuming no more unfortunate events, it could bear in 3 more years.

Persimmon Tree Updates. 6.6.18

Nikita's Gift Hybrid Persimmon..  6.6.18

 The persimmon trees are doing nicely.  I planted the Asian Persimmon "Saijo" and the hybrid  (D. kaki X D. virgiana cross) Persimmon "Nikita's Gift" tree in 2013, bare root from Raintree Nursery.  They've been bearing for at least 3 years.  My mower isn't working - normally I would have the grass cut shorter.  I'm trying to limb them up to make mowing easier, by eliminating deer cages, but they are not quite high enough for that yet.  Nikita's Gift continues to outperform Saijo, faster growth and more flowers.

Of the American Persimmons,  I planted Yates in Jan, 2015.   This tree was in a small tree pot.  It has been bearing for one or two years.
Again, I'm hoping to limb it up to make maintenance easier, while avoiding most deer damage.

Nikita's Gift Flower buds.  6.6.18

 Yates also has a good crop of flower buds, so I'm optimistic.

I think I bought Prairie Star American Persimmon  in 2014.  It had setbacks due to rabbit or deer browsing, but now looks vigorous and strong.  I'm not expecting flowers this year.

Yates American Persimmon Tree.  6.6.18

Many growers report that persimmons are deer resistant, but I've had significant damage from deer.  Since I don't want setbacks, I keep them caged and am working on growing them so that the low branches are  above the main deer-browsing height.

Yates American Flower Buds.  6.6.18

Saijo Persimmon Tree.  6.6..18

Saijo Persimmon Buds.  6.6.18

Prairie Star American Persimmmon Tree.  6.6.18

Yates American Persimmon. First Taste. 10.7.17

Yates American Persimmon.  10.7.17

Today was my first taste of any American persimmon, and in this case, the Yates persimmon that I planted in early 2015.  This tree has about a dozen fruits.  The ripe persimmons almost fall from the tree, when touched. 

These are smaller than Nikita's Gift, and earlier.  Not quite as sweet, I think as Nikita's Gift or Saijo.  They are a wonderful rich flavor, thick texture, not as liquidy as some ripened astringent Asian persimmons I've eaten.

All I can say is, definitely worth growing.

Yates American Persimmon.  10.7.17

Yates American Persimmonss. 10.9.18

Yates American Persimmon.  10.9.18

Today as I was wandering around my orchard, I passed by the Yates American Persimmon tree.  I brushed against a branch, and a fruit fell off.  Looking at the ground, there were multiple juicy, ripe persimmons.

These are delicious.

I planted this tree in January, 2015.  Not bad, just 3 years old.

Persimmon Daydreaming. 12.18.14

American Persimmon.  Image source commons.wikimedia,org

American persimmon.  Image source commons.wikimedia.org

I've been thinking about adding an American persimmon tree.  I have a location in mind.

There are a few varieties described as not needing a male to pollinate them.  Yates, Prok, Meader.   Time to bear is listed as 3 to 5 years.

The varieties at Starks are 1 to 2 feet tall, in air pots.  Those are containers with open bottom, so the roots are "air pruned" resulting in bushier root mass and considered more likely to survive.  That size is small to my mind.  I have grown other trees from smaller, however.

Burnt Ridge also carries persimmon trees.  I sent them an email asking size, time to bear.

I only want to try one tree.  Yates or Prok are options.  Yates has more of a flavor description, Prok has more claim about how much they bear, and larger fruit.  Those are not side to side comparisons.

Starks gives ideal planting time as early march.  Will think about it some more.

We bought Asian persimmons at the grocery store the past couple of weeks.  Hichaya was much better than Fuyu.  Fuyu are more common.  They are better if allowed to ripen until soft.  They are like a tropical fruit flavor, a jelly in a fruit skin.

Persimmon, Pawpaw, and Peach Trees Fall Color. 11.3.15

Nikita's Gift Hybrid Persimmon.  11.3.15

Today I stopped by the One Green World nursery outlet in Portland.  Fall is a good time to plant many types of trees.  I found two fruit varieties to try:

American persimmon "Prairie Star" (Diospyros virginiana) and  Korean bush cherry (Prunus japonica).   More on the bush cherry later.

Back at Battleground, the persimmons have nice fall color.  The best is Nikita's Gift - a hybrid between Diospyros virginiana and Asian persimmon,  Diosyyros kaki.  The little Prairie Star also has nice color.

Asian Persimmon "Saijo" had a tough summer, too much heat.  The leaves curled, but did not fall off.  They have nice color now, but it's hard to see due to the curled leaves.  Maybe next year it will do better.

The other American persimmon, Yates, doesn't look like much this year as far as leaf color goes.

Prairie Star American Persimmon.  11.3.15

Saijo Asian Persimmon.  11.3.15

Other fruit trees / plants with nice fall color were the NC1 Pawpaw and the genetic dwarf peach seedling.  The peach seeedling has fuzzy buds.  Those might indicate flower buds for next Spring.  It is about 3 years post germination.

It was interesting looking at the persimmons at One Green World.  They had several Nikita's Gift persimmons with big fruits on the 1 foot tall plants.  I asked the clerk how they accomplish that.  He didn't know.  They also had a kaki persimmon from Xian, which had little green fruits.   That did not seem promising to me, November and no where near ripe.

Mine may have received too much nitrogen this year.  It is a gamble.  Too little nitrogen, growth is puny.  Too much, and fruits don't set or fall off.   I will probably fertilize the two little American persimmons prior to Spring, but not the Asian and hybrid, which are both over 6 foot tall, so I don't need growth on those so much as wanting to taste the fruits.

NC1 Pawpaw.  11.3.15

Nikita's Gift Persimmons at One Green World Nursery.  11.3.15

American Persimmons are not yet developed as commercial fruits.  The challenges are, they tend to be small, too soft to ship, and have a bad reputation because anyone who has tried an unripe one never wants to try again.  When ripe, they are very soft, and lose their astringency.  They also have the challenge that, in their wild state, male and female trees are separate, and the females require pollination to form fruits.  Many varieties of Asian persimmons lost the need for a male to pollinate them (parthenocarpic), and those fruits are seedless.  Saijo does not need a pollinator, and apparently neither does Nikita's Gift.  Yates / Juhl is parthenocarpic.

James Claypool was an amateur who attempted to breed persimmons as an ideal fruit for home gardener or orchard.  He trialed thousands of hybrids, starting with varieties from earlier, mainly amateur, developments and improvements over wild persimmons.  When Claypool developed an illness and could no longer work on his persimmons, the Indiana Nut Growers Association took over.

Seedling Genetic Dwarf Peach.  11.3.15

Yates (Juhl) American Persimmon.  11.3.15

Persimmons Are Ripening. Fall Color. 11.2.18

Nikita's Gift Persimmons.  11.2.18

Nikita's Gift Persimmons.  11.2.18

October and November is persimmon season.  We already harvested and ate, all of the Yates American Persimmons, in October, but the rest are just beginning to ripen.

The Nikita's Gift hybrid persimmon tree has lost its leaves, and the orange/red globes are quite beautiful  hanging on the branches.  Most are still hard.  We will start ripening some, soon, indoors.

The Saijo Asian persimmon tree does not have as many this year.  However, the ones that it does have, should be very sweet.  I suspect the smaller crop will be typical for this tree in my yard.


Prairie Star got off to a difficult start in its first two years.  However now it's becoming a handsome young tree.  It's big enough to have flowers either next year or the year after, if climate and the gods of orchards are with us.

Persimmon trees have such beautiful fall color.

Nikita's Gift Hybrid Persimmon Tree.  11.2.18

 I was so enthusiastic about these fruits, I decided to order two additional persimmon trees for future years.  The varieties are Coffee Cake (Nishimura Wase) and Chocolate (Maru)  Both benefit from pollination by the other.  Persimmon benefits from pollination is complicated, but in the case of these varieties, each makes both female and male flowers.

Saijo Asian Persimmon tree.  11.2.18

Yates American Persimmon Tree.  11.2.18

Prairie Star American Persimmon Tree.  11.2.18

Yates American Persimmons. Early Harvest. 10.11.2020

 These persimmons are about a month early.  They were already falling off the tree.  Yates is an American persimmon (Diospyros virginiana), so smaller than grocery store Asian persimmons (Diospyros kaki), but with a richer flavor, like apricots with spices and drenched in wildflower honey.  These were just that good.

This tree is fenced, which is good.  I'm sure the critters would have absconded with all of these, leaving me none.

Fig, Persimmon,Progress Report. 5.30.15

Container Figs.  5.130.15

 Container figs all have thick mulch of chopped fir tree.  Some are doing better than others.  I've snapped off the growing tips, for branches of 4 or more leaves, to stimulate fig development.  For in-ground fig row south of house, I've done the same for side branches but allowed the central leaders to continue.

Persimmons.  The 2 trees in 3rd leaf, and the American Persimmon in 1st leaf, are all growing vigorously.  Nikita's Gift and Yates' flower buds persist. Chances are they will fall off, but I watch anyway.   All have protection from deer and rodents, and all have thick grass clipping mulch.  All have been given pee-cycling fertilizer, and all have been given extra water.

American Persimmon "Yates".  5.30.15

Hybrid Persimmon "Nikita's Gift"  5.30.15

 Pawpaws.   The three in 3rd leaf are growing well. "Sunflower" 3 fruit embryo / one flower, persists.  All have had doses of pee-cycling fertilizer, diluted 1:10, and all have been given extra water.  All have thick layers of grass clipping mulch, and nearby grass/weeds are removed.

Pawpaw "Mango", in first leaf, looks great.  That too, has been given the spa treatment, with  diluted pee, grass clipping mulch, protective fencing, and weed/grass clearance.

Kaki Persimmon "Saijo".  5.30.15

Pawpaw trees @ 3rd Leaf.  5.30 15

Walking Around. Fruit. 6.7.15

Bagged Apples.  6.7.15

Chinese Haw "Red Sun".  6.7.15

 Walking Around.

For most of the fruits, there isn't a lot that needs to be done, from now to fall.   If I am up to it, I can cut weeds, re-mulch, and do some summer pruning.  Some will need watering.

The zipper lock fruit bags always seem steamed.  I don't know if that hurts anything.  I have not seen that mentioned as an issue.

Ning's Chinese Haw has a nice crop of fruit, still small and green.  First year for that.  Deer like any branches within reach.

Almaden Duke Cherry multigraft.  I finished grafting yesterday.   Nothing to do until about 3 weeks from now, when the ties need to be removed.

Jonared apple multigraft.  Not much to do.  Re-mulch.  Tie down the branches for better spread of scaffold.  Any time this summer.

Fig row.  Lattarula is the most vigorous at the moment.  They will get water, but no fertilizer.

Meyer Lemon, in container.  Blooming nicely.  The fragrance is present even when not in sight.  Very sweet.  Leaves look yellow, but that doesn't seem to hurt.  Just needs water this summer. I do give it some acid-loving plant miracle grow, dilute.

Other citrus, unknown seedling, about 18 years old, just for decoration.  No bloom, not surprised.  Kumquat, no bloom.  I thought it might.  Same treatment as Meyer lemon.

Yates Persimmon.  Now that it's summer, I will back down  on the nitrogen boost.  This is first-leaf, so it will need regular watering.  Same with Mango Pawpaw and Sweet Treat Pluerry.  Speaking of which, the leaves are insect magnets.  Full of holes.  If it continues like that, I may not keep it.

Genetic dwarf peach seedling.  Very lush.  I think it's in it's 3rd or 4th year.  No idea if or when it will bloom.  Kept out of rain all winter.  Zero leaf curl.  Genetic dwarf peaches that were in the rain - covered with leaf curl.

Amaden Duke Cherry multigraft.  6.7.15

Jonared Apple Multigraft.  6.7.15

Lattarula Fig.  2nd year from cutting.  6.7.15

Meyer Lemon.  6.7.15

Yates Persimmon.  6.7.15

Genetic Dwarf Peach Seedling.  6.7.15