Fuyu persimmon

Sun

Full sun in a warm position sheltered from strong winds and late spring frosts.

Water

Water deeply during dry spells, especially while establishing and as fruit develops; avoid waterlogged soil.

Soil

Deep, well-drained loam is ideal; tolerates clay if drainage is good. Slightly acidic to neutral soil is preferred.

Height

15-25 ft (4.6-7.6 m)

Spread

15-20 ft (4.6-6.1 m)

Flowers

Small, inconspicuous creamy-yellow flowers in late spring to early summer.

Foliage

Large, oval, glossy dark-green leaves with yellow, orange or red autumn colour.

Growth

Moderate; slower in cool climates or poor soil.

Care needed

Medium

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

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

Difficulty

Moderate

Toughness

Fairly tough

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

1. Planting day

   7 ft (2 m)

2. After 1 year

   7 ft (2.2 m)

3. After 2 years

   8 ft (2.3 m)

4. After 3 years

   8 ft (2.5 m)

5. After 5 years

   9 ft (2.8 m)

About 26 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

Safe

Growth rate

Slow

• Water the root area deeply through the first two growing seasons and during prolonged summer drought.
• Apply organic mulch over the root zone, keeping it clear of the trunk.
• Use a modest spring feed only if growth is weak; excess nitrogen encourages leafy growth and fruit drop.
• Thin heavy fruit clusters after the natural early fruit drop to reduce branch breakage.
• Protect young trees from severe frost and shelter them from drying winds.
• One tree can set fruit without a pollinator; nearby compatible persimmons may increase seed formation.

Pruning. Prune lightly in late winter or early spring after the worst frosts, removing dead, crossing and poorly placed branches and developing a strong framework. Fruit forms on new shoots arising from the previous year's wood, so avoid routinely shortening all branch tips.

Pick fully orange fruit in autumn to early winter, before a damaging freeze; 'Fuyu' is non-astringent and can be eaten while firm or allowed to soften. Cut the stalk with secateurs, leaving the leafy calyx attached, rather than pulling fruit from the branch. A grafted tree usually gives its first worthwhile crop about 3-5 years after planting, sometimes longer in cool conditions.

Late winter

Plant while dormant where the ground is workable, and prune established trees lightly after severe frosts have passed.

Spring

Renew mulch, feed only if needed, and protect emerging shoots from forecast frost.

Early summer

Check fruit set and thin overloaded clusters once natural fruit drop slows.

Summer

Water during dry spells and inspect fruit-bearing branches for strain.

Autumn

Harvest fully coloured fruit and remove fallen or damaged fruit.

Winter

Protect young trunks from browsing animals and check tree ties for rubbing.

• Use as a specimen in a sunny lawn or open border for autumn foliage and conspicuous orange fruit.
• Include in a small orchard or edible landscape with enough space to reach the canopy for harvesting.
• Place against the backdrop of a sheltered courtyard wall, allowing room for its spreading crown.
• Combine with low spring bulbs and groundcovers, keeping a mulched area around the trunk.

Garden styles it suits: Japanese, Backyard orchard, Edible landscape, Food forest, Autumn colour and Modern courtyard.

Plant it with: Chives, Thyme, Crocus, Strawberries and Yarrow.

Wildlife: Birds and mammals eat ripe fruit, sometimes before harvest. Flowers attract visiting insects, although 'Fuyu' can produce fruit without pollination.

• Poor ripening in cool summers: choose the warmest sheltered site; winter hardiness alone does not guarantee a crop.
• Fruit drop: maintain even soil moisture, avoid excessive nitrogen and allow for some natural early shedding.
• Scale insects and mealybugs: inspect stems and leaf undersides; remove small infestations by hand and use a locally approved horticultural oil when appropriate.
• Fruit fly in affected Australian regions: follow local monitoring advice, remove fallen fruit promptly and protect fruit with suitable insect-exclusion bags or netting.

Not generally known to be poisonous to people, cats or dogs, and ripe flesh is edible. Seeds and large pieces can cause choking or intestinal obstruction in pets. Persimmons, especially unripe fruit and seeds, can form digestive concretions called bezoars; this is a serious, potentially fatal risk for horses, so keep trees and fallen fruit out of paddocks. Excessive consumption of unripe fruit can also cause bezoars in people.

• Hachiya persimmon (Diospyros kaki 'Hachiya')

  Fruit is usually elongated and acorn-shaped rather than flattened; it must become jelly-soft before eating because firm fruit is strongly astringent.

• American persimmon (Diospyros virginiana)

  Usually bears much smaller fruit and develops deeply blocky bark with age; its fruit generally needs to soften fully before eating.

Diospyros comes from Greek words commonly interpreted as 'food of the gods', kaki is the Japanese name for persimmon, and Fuyu means 'winter' in Japanese.

Propagation. Usually propagated by grafting or budding onto compatible persimmon rootstock. Seedlings do not come true to 'Fuyu', and rooting cuttings is difficult.

Accepted botanical name

Diospyros kaki

Native range

Assam, China North-Central, China South-Central, China Southeast, Hainan, Taiwan and Vietnam.

Measured

Average height 1200 cm.

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