Burnt Ridge has persimmon rootstock pretty cheap. They are not difficult to graft.
I have had good luck with lots of them (a dozen or more) using my own rootstock and w/t grafts.
If rooting is so difficult … well grafting is not.
Update… BRN had 3-4 ft persimmon seedlings for sale back in march… cheap… they must have sold out… no longer listed. They will probably have them again next spring.
Budding and growing some stem may have no correlation to rooting. I’ve been fooled by citrus and mulberry, the former for over a year and not a hint of root.
Take a picture if you see some roots, or several inches of stem, otherwise I wouldn’t get your hopes up.
I’m not really sure they would have a good chance of survival if they rooted, even though Dunaj is a seedling from 40km down Southwest. It gets colder around my place and it’s advised to graft onto lotus here to improve hardiness.
I’ve had a pear cutting survive in a pot from July til May, not even callused… The sad thing was, I did not know. Would have used it as a graft. I was from a castle orchard.
So, I’ve pulled them out because I want to plant the hazel out during the next cooler spell. No roots or anything. Scratched them a bit, applied more hormone and put them in a new pot. Experiment continues.
I’ve been growing a persimmon tree from seed in an aquaponic kitchen garden. I’ve waited until the plant was high enough to reach the short level of its lighting fixture. The roots are pretty long, about a foot in length. I think growing your water roots to a length strong enough to withstand some damage is a sure way to ensure your plant survives the transition from water to soil.