Tree is about 15 feet tall and beautiful colors. No clue to the age or true history. This location would be 6B.
Fruit is hard and crunchy like an apple but sweet. Very hard to pull from the limb. November 3. No idea if this is something common like Fuyu or something totally different…im not that into Asian persimmons and dont know one from the other but this one interests me due to it being local.
I don’t know much about asian persimmons, but this does seem like an intriguing find! Are you thinking that this is a non-astringent variety, looking healthy in zone 6b?
Is it growing in a sheltered location that might offer extra warmth in the winter? Is that in a park, or someones yard? I wonder if you would be able to cut scion wood in the winter…
Presumably grafted, as the rootstock is way more vigorous based on the photo?
I know less than you on them. I have always passed on them as i have always read how they wont grow here or will die on a bad winter etc. Zipcode is 25571 if someone wants to figure out how to find the coldest its been over the past 10-15 years or however old this tree is…20 yrs?
The location is at an old high school and where the tree is located it is overcrowded and shaded out if anything. There is a cherry tree and several types of pines that seem burnt up and some similar sized nut trees… looks like some kind of experiment honestly.
I dont see how in the winter it gets any help.
Not sure about non astringent… i bit into one yesterday and it was sweet but hard and crunchy like an apple…very little hint of flavor.
So it must need to ripen another month or so on the tree? Im guessing this is one that needs to freeze on the tree?
For all i know this is just a Fuyu… hard to believe its something obscure…but maybe it is. I figured this forum would be loaded with folks that had some idea. I havent reached out to social medias yet… because i will get 55 answers that are wrong in 30 minutes.
I would just like to know if its a common cultivar or something unique at this point.
The closest weather data I can can find is for Huntington airport and the Charleston airport. In the last 10 or 15 years, the record lows were on Feb 20th, 2015. -16F and -11F, respectively. Do you have an idea how your weather typically compares to those locations?
I doubt it’s that old. My Chinebuli is the same size and isn’t even 10 years old.
Although, it does appear fairly shaded, which makes it grow slower. How big does the root stock diameter look? Maybe 5 or 6 inches?
Hi Kris
My guess is Jiro. If it’s not astringent now while hard, it’s most likely a kakki. It’s too small to be Fuyu but about the right size for Jiro or IKKJ. Fuyu would have 4 distinct lobes and be more flat than round. It seems to be early ripening to be so colored already in your zone. I would be interested in scions if it turns out to be non astringent when ripe
Dennis
Kent Wa
I think he said they were sweet right off the tree even with the very firm texture
@DennisD There seems to be a fair amount of confusion between Fuyu and Jiro, with many Jiro fruit sold in stores as “Fuyu.” I’m no expert and can’t guarantee that the non-astringent kakis I purchased from nurseries are true-to-type, but based on my growing experience I would have said the opposite of what you describe: Jiro types have four distinct lobes resulting in a squarish and flatter shape, while the Fuyu types are rounder. I also agree with @ampersand that this tree looks small for a 10+ year old kaki, but I do have one 10 year old IKKJ in poor soil that has runted out and isn’t much bigger than this one.
over a foot… i never thought to measure that but did notice the graft union and how large the trunk was.
Okay, in that case it probably older than I thought on first glance from the pictures.
Unless it gains astringency while ripening it has none at the very hard stage now. I tasted one last week and one again yesterday. The rest i have on the counter near some apples to see if they ripen any more. Taste is fairly sweet but the mouthfeel isnt good… too hard and too much crunch right now.
Doubtful that this tree would allow fruit to hang until ripe at its location… due to the people picking them.
As far as scions go… hillbillyhort told me that he collects scions in early spring. I collected about 30 cuttings to attempt to root… in that meantime.
I just dont want to waste time and effort if this is a known named tree that can be purchased by anyone.
1)They are hard as a rock right now in early Nov.
2)Taste has a faint of sweet but no other complexities right now.
3)Unknown age at Z6B… tree seems crowded out and i would imagine very little sun… the soil looks like nothing special…and likely all of the other trees have pulled most all nutrients.
If they dont ripen… or gain some kind of flavor or complexity at some point then i dont see why anyone would want to grow it… Not sure if it needs to hang another month or two or what.
So if ripe means December/Jan/Feb… then that should be a consideration… they are not ripe to me right now…unless there is a cultivar that is used for drying or something else at this stage.
I often pick my kaki fruit when it has turned yellow/orange but before it goes soft, so that the crows don’t pick at them and break branches. The fruit you picked will continue to ripen off the tree. They will get softer and sweeter as they ripen. They probably won’t develop any additional flavor, though. If you’re fond of American persimmon flavor, then most kakis will seem bland by comparison. Eventually they will get gooey like any astringent kaki, hybrid or American. My wife and kids prefer to eat them when they’re still firm - they like the crunchy texture better. I’m not sure how the fruit would do on the tree after a hard freeze. I’ve always picked my non-astringents well before that happens here, but my astringent kakis don’t seem to be adversely affected by a freeze. They just start to attract a lot more bird attention after all the leaves have dropped.
I wouldn’t recommend drying the fruit if they’re still quite hard. But if you wait until they start to soften up but are still firm enough to slice, then you could dehydrate them. That’s what I do with the bulk of my astringent kakis.
If you place them under a glass on a paper towel for several days in a Sunny window, they will ripen in the room.
Dennis
Because of the color, size and the fact that it is this ripe in zone 6, I would not rule out the Izu. I have just got done working with the Izu in a video I produced. The Jiro and Imoto were not quite ready here in zone 9 central California.
My internets say that Izu is the earliest ripening… (early in September a month before Fuyu). Its November here… and they are rock hard almost inedible…but not astringent with a hint of sweet.
Only a thought, in zone 6 I would think that most of the Fuyu types, Fuyugaki, Jiro or Imoto, would be way late and not even color as well as the one you had pictured. So my thought went to what variety would be a possible zone 6 compactable variety and color that early. Like I said just a thought
Looks like Fuyu to me. Ripening about the right time as well.
