I'm in Eugene and looking for a persimmon that will do well here. I planted a Saijo persimmon from One Green World 2 years ago, but it leafed out a little too early and got bit by frost and never recovered. It seems to be a dead stick now, and I am wondering if I should try to replant it, try another variety, or give up on persimmon. We like the flavorful astringent variety, so that's why we didnt go for the Fuyu. Any suggestions?
I would talk to One Green World and see if they'll at least give you a discount on another tree. They're supposed to be hardy here.
Izu is a naturally dwarfing, early ripening tree but it's non-astringent.
I know what you mean about the astringent ones. I prefer them too, because the flavor is so much more complex.
Saijo does grow here, and it will often ripen late or inside when not tree ripened. I think it has one of the most interesting flavors of the Asians.
I actually prefer American persimmons. They are also astringent until ripe. With the earlier ripening varieties, you have a much greater chance of ripening your crop. You will need a male and a female. YOu can buy 2 trees, or Meader is self-pollinating. Szukis is self pollinating, but it's mostly male. I bought scions from John Gordon in upstate New York and grafted them. I'm going to graft some more in a couple of weeks. In my opinion, the Americans have a more complex flavor than the Asians. They are more of a "wild tree". You can graft American varieties onto Asian persimmon trees, although, most rootstock is simply American persimmon seedlings. Therefore, you would graft an Asian persimmon onto American rootstock, then graft Americans onto the Asian. Americans tend to be brittle and lose limbs, which might be a graft. Sounds complex, but I'm going to try it.
John S
PDX OR
Thanks John. One Green World was recommending this Saijo as the one that ripened consistently on their farm. They wanted me to wait a year and see if it would bounce back. One year lost! I will call them again next week.
I grew up on a farm in Maryland where would often find wild persimmons. Small and very tasty, but make sure they are ripe or you'll have a big mouth full of pucker. As I recall, there had to be frost before they would ripen.
I tried to graft the Univ or Oregon's infamous persimmon (Hachiya?) onto a diospyros lotus rootstock, both from the Lane Co Propogation Fair. The scion was a little weak-looking and I dont think it's going to take.
Interesting waht you said about Asian being grafted onto American rootstock. This diospyros lotus rootstock looked like it had been grafted already! Maybe it was on American roots. The roots were black and very developed and sprawling for such a small 1/4-inch tree. It was really too large for the large pot I put it in.
Just as a postscript, I called One Green World 5 or 6 times and left several messages, but was never able to talk to anyone about the Saijo persimmon. This was very dissappointing and they don't have any email, so essentially no way to reach them. Interesting that they arent offering Saijo anymore.
I have left both phone and email messages for them and I've always had them call back, although sometimes it's weeks!
Black roots are how they are naturally.
I like "wild" AMerican persimmons, but they don't hold a candle to the selected varieties in my opinion.
I would think that Saijo would be readily available, even for summer budding if you look around.
John S
PDX OR
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