American persimmon

Sun

Full sun for good fruiting; tolerates partial shade but crops less heavily.

Water

Moderate; water young trees regularly. Established trees tolerate some drought, but prolonged dryness can reduce fruit size and cause fruit drop.

Soil

Deep, well-drained loam is ideal, but it tolerates clay, sandy soil and occasional wet periods. Slightly acidic to neutral soil is preferred.

Height

35-60 ft (10.7-18.3 m)

Spread

20-35 ft (6.1-10.7 m)

Flowers

Late spring to early summer; small, cream to greenish-yellow, bell-shaped flowers.

Foliage

Oval, glossy dark green leaves, turning yellow, orange or sometimes reddish-purple in autumn.

Growth

Moderate, usually faster in deep soil with adequate moisture.

Care needed

Medium

• Pollinators
• Drought tolerant
• Heat tolerant
• Wildlife
• Low allergen
• Edible

Northern hemisphere months. In Australia, shift them by six.

Difficulty

Moderate

Toughness

Very tough

Pick your zone, country, light and whether you have pets.

1. Planting day

   7 ft (2 m)

2. After 1 year

   9 ft (2.8 m)

3. After 2 years

   12 ft (3.6 m)

4. After 3 years

   14 ft (4.3 m)

5. After 5 years

   19 ft (5.9 m)

About 16 years to full size.

From a typical nursery size, at an average rate for this kind of plant. A rule of thumb, not a forecast.

Cats and dogs

Mildly toxic: may upset a stomach

Native to

the US

Growth rate

Fast

• Plant a young, container-grown tree in its permanent position; its deep root system makes later transplanting difficult.
• Water deeply during dry spells for the first two growing seasons and during fruit development.
• Spread 2-3 in (5-8 cm) of organic mulch over the root area, keeping it clear of the trunk.
• Feed lightly in spring only if growth is weak; excess nitrogen encourages leafy growth at the expense of fruit.
• For reliable crops, plant a known female fruiting selection with a compatible male pollinator nearby, unless the selection is known to fruit without pollination.
• Remove unwanted root suckers promptly, especially those growing below a graft.

Pruning. Prune in late winter or early spring before growth begins, forming a strong framework with well-spaced branches. Remove dead, crossing or crowded growth and unwanted suckers; avoid heavy pruning because fruit forms on the current season's shoots.

Gather orange to reddish-orange fruit in autumn when it is very soft and releases easily, or collect freshly fallen, undamaged fruit from a clean surface. Firm fruit is strongly astringent; frost is not needed for ripening. Grafted trees commonly produce a meaningful crop about 3-5 years after planting, while seedlings may take 7-15 years or longer.

Late winter

Prune lightly to maintain a strong framework and remove dead or crossing branches.

Spring

Plant young trees when soil is workable, renew mulch and water thoroughly.

Late spring

Check flowering and whether a compatible male pollinator is available if your female tree requires one.

Summer

Water during prolonged dry spells and remove unwanted root suckers.

Autumn

Harvest fully softened fruit frequently and clear fallen fruit from paths.

Late autumn

Protect young trunks from browsing animals and mower damage.

• Use as a fruiting shade tree in a large lawn, positioned away from paving where fallen fruit could become slippery.
• Plant at a sunny woodland edge with serviceberries and native shrubs for layered foliage and wildlife food.
• Include in a spacious orchard or food forest, allowing room for its mature canopy and any pollinator tree.
• Use as an autumn focal point, with ornamental grasses beneath the outer canopy to frame the colourful leaves and persistent fruit.

Garden styles it suits: Backyard orchard, Food forest, Edible landscape, Woodland, Wildlife garden and Homestead.

Plant it with: Serviceberry, Eastern redbud, Black chokeberry, Switchgrass, Little bluestem and Wild bergamot.

Wildlife: Flowers attract bees, and ripe fruit feeds birds and mammals, including opossums, raccoons and foxes in its native range. Deer may browse young trees, so use a protective cage where needed.

• Little or no fruit: check that the tree is female and has suitable pollination; young age, shade and cool summers also limit cropping.
• Fruit drop: some early shedding is normal, but drought and poor pollination can increase it; water consistently and check pollinator availability.
• Leaf spots: remove fallen infected leaves and improve air circulation; light spotting rarely needs chemical treatment.
• Persimmon psyllids: feeding can curl young leaves; established trees usually tolerate damage, so avoid routine spraying and support natural predators.

Ripe flesh is edible for people and is not known to be toxic to cats or dogs, but keep pets from swallowing whole fruit or seeds because these can cause choking or intestinal blockage. Unripe fruit is rich in tannins, and excessive consumption can cause digestive problems and, rarely, hard masses in the stomach. Horses can develop serious, potentially fatal intestinal obstruction after eating persimmons; keep fruiting trees and fallen fruit out of horse paddocks.

• Asian persimmon (Diospyros kaki)

  Usually has much larger fruit and broader leaves; it is generally less cold-hardy. Some cultivars can be eaten firm, unlike typical American persimmon fruit.

• Date-plum (Diospyros lotus)

  Produces smaller, usually grape-sized fruit that turns blue-black when ripe, rather than the larger orange fruit of American persimmon.

Diospyros is commonly translated from Greek as 'food of the gods', virginiana refers to Virginia, and persimmon comes from an Algonquian name for the fruit.

Propagation. Named fruiting selections are grafted onto seedling rootstocks. Seed requires a period of cold, moist stratification; seedlings vary in fruit quality and sex and take much longer to crop. The species also spreads locally by root suckers.

Accepted botanical name

Diospyros virginiana

In the US and Canada

Native in the lower 48 states.

Native range

Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky and Louisiana.

Measured

Soil pH 4.7 to 7.5. Average height 776 cm.

Sources: GBIF (CC BY 4.0), USDA PLANTS and Trefle (CC BY 4.0). The care and design notes are LandscapeGPT's own.