You may recall that last year I
collected a wild persimmon and planted the seeds. I put these in a pot outdoors and just let them be - no water, no attention whatsoever. I figured the less I messed with them, the more likely they would be to germinate.
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| Persimmon tree (Diospyros virginiana) beginning to sprout from the soil. |
It appears my gambit worked! I have one little tree that sprouted from the soil in late March or early April and another one is breaking through the soil now. (And I'm pretty sure it's not a pecan or oak tree planted by a neighborhood squirrel, which is what usually comes up in my pots that sit outdoors...)
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| Persimmon tree (Diospyros virginiana) growing quickly. |
The funny thing is that just a week before the first tree sprouted I placed an order from a plant catalog and included two small persimmon trees, so it looks like I may soon have persimmon trees coming out my ears and I don't really have a plan for where to plant them!
I know my mom would love to be able to pick persimmons from her own yard, but I also know that these native persimmons are not the ideal candidates for cooking. And I also realize it will be years before the trees are large enough to bear fruit...
I do have access to land where I can plant these, so maybe I'll start a little grove there.
Cheers to you for trying...
ReplyDeleteGBP (my blogging buddy) scattered seeds around the neighborhood and joked about being "Bonnie Persimmonseed." After moving away she wistfully doubted that any of those persimmon seeds had ever borne fruit. I was able to report that, 20-50 years later, I'd picked a few pints.
(They may not be as ideal for cooking as the Japanese kind, but they do make delicious pies.)
That's a great story! Well done, Bonnie Persimmonseed!
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