Kaki persimmon, also called Japanese persimmon (Diospyros kaki); common persimmon (D. virginiana). Persimmons are delectable fall fruit for home gardeners in Zones 6-10. Although unpleasantly astringent when hard and immature, a fully ripe persimmon is soft and sweet, with jellylike flesh.
Slightly larger plants, talled semideterminate, cease production when their stems become 18 to 24 inches long. The third type, known as indeterminate, consists of wide- ranging vines that grow and bear indefinitely unless they are killed by frost or disease; indeterminate plants are the only tomato plants suitable for staking.
The main colourings are light green and brown. The plants have oval, green pseudobulbs and usually two, though occasionally one, mid-green leaves. The flower spikes appear from the base of the leading pseudobulb in spring and carry up to a dozen flowers on two distinct planes, on arching spikes well above the foliage. The flowering time is early summer, and the flowers, which are wonderfully scented, will last for four to five weeks.
Several nonresistant varieties are recommended because many gardeners find them worth growing for their flavor, color, size or vigor, even at risk of loss.
Persimmon trees grow best in soil with a pH of 6.0 to 7.0. For fruit within three years, buy one- or two-year-old trees. Set out container-grown trees at any time, but plant bare-rooted trees in early spring as soon as the ground can be worked. Cut off all but three to five well- placed branches, spaced 6 to 12 inches apart and forming angles greater than 45 degrees with the trunk. Cut these branches (on a bare-rooted tree only) to 6 to 8 inches. Beginning the second spring, apply 1 pound of 10-10-10 fertilizer for each year the tree has been planted, up to a maximum of 5 pounds per tree. Thin out the fruit until the persimmons are 6 to 7 inches apart.
A staked plant must be trained to one or two stems; to remove side stems that grow between each leaf and the main stem, wait until they are 1 or 2 inches long, then pull them down sharply-they will snap right out. To assure a crop early in the season, when temperatures are cool, spray the blossoms with a hormone compound designed to stimulate the formation of fruit.
