One week a year, right now, the persimmons are ripe -- peachy-apricot-orange fruits ranging from cherry sized to apple sized. I've eaten one, but what matters to me is their BEAUTY and secret ability to forecast winter weather! And, darn, the only fruiting tree, absolutely leafless, that I found was on private property and the fruit you see pictured hung just about a foot out of my jumping and grabbing range, and that's all that kept me honest. (Demetrius called stealing other people's produce "stealth gardening.")
Persimmon trees, related to the ebony tree, are strong and hold fast against flooding -- good riverbank trees. Longbows are still made out of 'simmon wood. Persimmons grow mostly in the southeastern U.S. and Pacific, MO is in the northernmost part of their range. In the Ozarks people say if you cut a fruit in half, you can read inside how severe the coming winter will be. Their tannin makes them inedible unless ripe.
Technically the persimmon fruit is a berry, and its formal name is Diospyrus virginiana, and I still want me some.
2 comments:
I seem to have a lot of persimmon trees in my Ozarks forest, but they are nondescript most of the year, so I overlook them.
Nice to know they have good wood. My dog always chews up his throwing sticks, and I'm always looking for how to make new ones for him.
When I first lived in MO, my backyard had dozens of Persimmon trees--so close together that they were tall, and branchless for much of their trunks. Top heavy. The fruit dropped when ripe. Our yard was literally carpeted with rotting fruit. Topped by a layer of zooming bees. Harvest at risk! (The fruit of my "orchard" was mostly seed. I only struggled to make Persimmon bread ONCE.)
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