Wow what a great harvest. Will you be drying or preserving some of them?
I’ll let you know in a few days, Tony. I have one ripening up nicely- hopefully ready for Monday 
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I like eating them fresh… will likely give many away to friends and family. I might try drying some. Haven’t thought too much about next steps yet.
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Do you have pictures of your trees too? I’m very curious about their growth forms.
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This is one of my two NG. By day’s end, all of the leaves fell off. It had over 140 fruit, and is maybe ten feet high. I strategically prune it but have never topped it. It has a wide and spreading growth habit.
I don’t have fotos of steiermark and Korea, but I can tell you they are very upright growers. I have not significantly pruned them because they’ve only been in the ground three years. They grow very fast, and will have to be topped because I prefer that they grow wide. Kasandra is not as fast as a grower but grows upright. I would say that my fuyus self-prune due to cold weather dieback.
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My two fuyu, one is supposedly regular fuyu and the other is fuyu imoto. Didn’t have much fruit on these this year because I’d dieback from last winter. But the year before, they were very productive
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I am gladded that the NG can handled NJ mild winter. Any issue with NG fruits drop while the trees were younger?
Tony
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These photos are from this past spring.
- Korea- 14 fruit
- Steiermark- 56 fruit
- Sestronka
- Kasandra- 5 fruit
- Zima khurma
All flowered for me this year, but only the three referenced above held fruit for the first time. I can honestly say that I can’t tell the difference between Korea and steiermark. Both have fast upright growth habits, and would be huge if left to grow without pruning. I will have to shape them this winter.
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I would say I’m zone 6b, and NG appears to handle it just fine. I’ve been known on this message board to complain about NG fruit drop. This was by far the best yield I’ve ever had. Both trees were planted in 2014 & 2015 when they were about 4-5 feet small trees. I think it just takes time to get them to be productive, likely longer than most other varieties.
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No wonder, Korea and Steiermark are identical, formerly known as Costata. These are not very hardy, where are you located?
I had read that too, about them being costata. I got mine from cliff England, who advertised them as very cold hardy. They’ve been VERY cold hardy for me in zone 6b NJ. No complaints from me. Next step is to see how they taste.
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Cliff England also lists Picudo as synonymous with Costata. Hopefully mine fruits next year so I can compare it with your Korea Kaki and Steiermark. I have a tiny graft of Korea Kaki. Glad to hear it grows fast!
How does the size of Steiermark and Korea compare to say Saijo? I remember you saying yours didn’t fruit this year due to winter damage, but hoping you remember.
I would say that Korea and steiermark are faster growers than saijo. It’s hard to make a good comparison, though, because my saijo was stunted several times due to significant damage. The cold winter damage would give it a natural bonsai effect!
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How about the size of the fruit? Are they comparable to Saijo? They seem a little bigger than your Nikita’s gift but smaller than Fuyu. Your pictures make me very excited for when my trees mature.
I found saijo sizes to be quite variable. I would say lengthwise Korea and steiermark are about the same as saijo but wider. I put them around the same size as NG. Below is a photo containing what I believe to be larger but typical specimens of korea, steiermark, and then NG.
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We are getting January weather in November this year. Tuesday night will drop down to 19 degrees with wind. I plan to protect my Persimmon tree this year since I grafted it spring 2019. Mostly Nikita’s gift with a small branch of IKKJ and Saijo.
Question is should I cover it before the 19 degree day or after? I wonder if getting through a hard winter night yet not below 0 will make it harden more or if it’s the same and I should cover it before that since I’m going to cover anyway. Today will be 60’s and perfect day for the job. Thoughts?
I don’t like to work in a windy and cold day. I rather cover it while the weather is warm. You can strip the leaves off if there are any left.
Tony
Thanks Tony. You don’t think letting it take 19 degree weather without protection will benefit it?