Short publication covering culture, management, and harvest of persimmon in Hawaii

Chia, C.L.

Evans, Dale O.

Hashimoto, Clark S.

ScholarSpace at University of Hawai'i at Manoa

HAWAII COOPERATIVE EXTENSION SERVICEHawaii Institute of Tropical Agriculture and Human ResourcesUniversity of Hawaii at ManoaCOMMODITY FACT SHEET PERS-3(A)FRUITPERSIMMONC. L. Chia, Extension Specialist, HorticultureClark S. Hashimoto, Extension Agent, CES-Maui CountyDale O. Evans, Research Associate, Horticulturer"f1. 1''' if 'i"'t;' l~ I "l:'i' l'~'" I';rt oldt"ii ~~"I"":l. 'i".i~,, !n 'r i;;';ti;~1crJttlMlFigure 1. 'Fuyu' persimmon.Figure 3. 'Maru' persimmon; internal discoloration,caused by curing, is normal.Figure 2. 'Fuyu' fruit cluster...Figure 4. 'Maru' fruit cluster.Scientific Name: Diospyros kakiCommon Names: Persimmon, Japanese persim-mon, kakiOrigin: AsiaDescriptionPersimmon is a dioecious, deciduous treegrowing to 25 ft (7.6 m) high. Its ovate or obovateleaves, 3 in. to 7 in. (7.6-17.8 ern) long, are shinyon top and pubescent beneath and are borne onpubescent branchlets. Persimmon flowers are yel-lowish white and 0.75 in. (1.9 em) long. Staminate(male) flowers have 16 to 24 stamens, while pis-tillate (female) flowers have eight staminodes.The fruit is a juicy berry to 3.5 in. (8.9 ern) indiameter and variable in shape, with a paleyellow, orange, or red exterior, and with orangeflesh. There is an enlarged persistent calyx at itsbase. Fruits are usually set in clusters.VarietiesPersimmon cultivars 'Fuyu', 'Maru', and'Hachiya' (Figures 1-6) are grown in Hawaii.The shape of 'Fuyu' fruit is flattened, 'Maru' isrounded, and 'Hachiya' is heart-shaped andpointed at the apex. 'Fuyu' is the most widelyplanted cultivar in Japan and is noted for itsnonastringent fruit, good yield, vigorous uprightgrowth habit, and ease of training. 'Maru' hassomewhat brittle branches, and the fruit isastringent, maturing about three weeks earlierthan 'Fuyu'. 'Hachiya' fruit is also astringentbefore softening. These and most other cultivarsbear only functionally female flowers (withstamens present but sterile) that without fertili-zation produce seedless (parthenocarpic) fruit. InJapan, these flowers are sometimes hand-polli-nated with pollen from varieties that bear maleflowers. Growers there believe that pollinationhelps to produce better fruit and that partheno-carpic fruit tends to drop prematurely. Hand-pollination is not practiced in Hawaii.LocationPersimmon is grown commercially inHawaii above elevations of 2000 ft (609 m), It issometimes grown as a home garden fruit in coollocations at lower elevations. Most of the currentproduction is in the Kula district of Maui, wherepersimmon flowers in March and April. Rainfallof at least 30 in. (762 mm) is required for goodperformance.Wind damage seldom occurs in Kula, but inother areas, trees should be protected from strongwinds. In the spring, the young foliage is easilydamaged. In the fall, premature defoliation bywind affects fruit quality and the next year's pro-duction. Branches with heavy crop loads may bebroken during windy weather. Shading by wind-break trees should be avoided. If persimmon doesnot receive full sun, weak growth and fruit dropmay result.SoilsPersimmon grows best on loamy soils, such asthe Kula series. Light, sandy soils are not suit-able, but it will grow on many other soil types andis tolerant of heavy clay soils if drainage is notseverly impeded. Soil pH of 6.0 to 6.5 is preferred.HarvestPersimmons are harvested when mature butstill firm, with color nearly fully developed.'Maru' fruit is greenish yellow when ripe; 'Fuyu'and 'Hachiya' fruits are orange. The fruit isremoved from the tree by clipping or breaking thesterns, leaving the calyx lobes attached to the fruit(Figures 2, 4, 6). Persimmons must be handledcarefully to avoid damage. Rough handlingcauses bruising and skin discoloration.Harvest season varies with elevation, beinglater at higher elevations. The usual harvest sea-son for 'Maru' in Kula is October to November; for'Fuyu', October to December; and for 'Hachiya',November to December.PostharvestBoth 'Fuyu' and 'Maru' fruits are firm whenripe. 'Maru' fruit needs to be cured after maturityto remove astringency caused by tannins. Thenonastringent 'Fuyu' fruit is ripened on the treeand is ready to eat when harvested. 'Hachiya'fruit can be picked when firm and ripened at roomtemperature until soft. Its astringency is elimi-nated during the ripening process. Its color shouldbe well developed before picking, or it may softenunevenly and remain astringent.Astringency is removed from 'Maru' persim-mons by a number of curing methods. Pollinationmay cause the fruit to cure on the tree. Pollinationis indicated by the presence of seeds in the fruit,and the tree-cured fruit is known as "chocolate"'Maru'. Two common postharvest curing treat-ments involve enclosing fruit in an airtightcontainer and exposing it to the vapors of ethylalcohol (35 to 40 percent alcohol) or dry ice (frozencarbon dioxide). In one example of an alcoholmethod, about 30 lb (13.6 kg) of fruit is treated with5 oz to 7 oz (148-207 ml) of ethyl alcohol, sealed forthree days, then removed and held at room tem-perature for several days until edible (Kitagawaand Glucina 1984). The liquid alcohol need notcontact the fruit. With the carbon dioxide method,about 60 lb (27.2 kg) of fruit is enclosed with a 1.25-lb (0.6-kg) block of dry ice and kept sealed for twoto three days. The dry ice should not contact thefruit. After curing, the flesh of 'Maru' fruits maycontain brown spotting, which is a normal resultof tannin breakdown (Figure 3).Refrigeration after softening prolongs thestorage life of 'Hachiya' fruit. For longer storage,persimmons may be peeled, pureed, and frozen orfrozen whole in plastic bags. 'Maru' and 'Hachi-ya' fruits may be peeled when firm and dried;drying removes astringency.PropagationDiospyros kaki seedlings are the preferredrootstocks for persimmon cultivars. They developlong taproots with few fibrous laterals, and root-stock cultivars have been selected that producevigorous, uniform seedlings. Rootstocks of D.virginiana (American persimmon) and D. lotus(date plum) are known to be better for wet soils, butthe former produces variable trees and excessivesuckering. D. lotus is susceptible to crown galland is incompatible with 'Fuyu'.Seeds are sown in 3-in.-deep (7.6-cm) con-tainers. When seedlings are 3 in. (7.6 em) high,they are transplanted to deep plastic plantingbags-6 x 18 in. (15.2 x 45.7 cm)-or to nurserybeds. At that time, the bottom one-fourth of thetaproot is pruned to encourage lateral rooting.Grafting is done during the dormant season onrootstock stems that are at least 3/8 in. (9 mm) indiameter. Whip-grafting low on the rootstock ispreferred, but chip-budding is also done. Scionswith two to four buds from the previous season'sgrowth are used. After grafting, the scion shouldbe enclosed in a plastic bag to maintain highhumidity. Large plants may be bark-grafted orcleft-grafted. In Hawaii, the three cultivarscommonly grown develop very few seeds, andseed for rootstocks is usually obtained fromCalifornia.Cultural PracticesTree spacing averages 15 ft to 20 ft (4.6-6.1 m)apart but varies with cultivar and soil fertility.Generally, wider spacing is used on deeper, morefertile soils. In Japan, trees are sometimesplanted at close spacing and thinned after five to10 years. Care is necessary when transplanting tothe field, because persimmon roots are fragile andeasily damaged by drying or rough handling.Young plants are trained to a modified central-leader structure by pruning shoots during the firstfew seasons, forcing growth into frameworkbranches. The aim is to develop a pyramidalshape with from three to five main limbs at about1-ft (30-cm) intervals on the trunk, beginning atabout 3 ft (91 em) above ground level. Staking with5-ft (1.5-m) stakes may aid in training youngtrees. Pruning mature plants is done during thedormant winter months (Figure 7) to removecrossover, diseased, or broken branches. Pruningis also done to remove weak, shaded branches,open the canopy to prevent self-shading, reduceexcessively vigorous shoot growth, and regulatecrop load.Persimmon fruit is borne on the currentseason's branch growth. After three to five years,bracing may be needed to prevent the weight of thefruit from breaking branches (Figure 8). Pruningsecondary branches so that bearing shoots are keptclose to the main branches may help to avoid adrooping habit and reduce the need for bracing.'Fuyu' fruit clusters are usually thinned to in-crease fruit size.Irrigation to supplement rainfall is desirableat times such as after transplanting, particularlywhen bare-rooted stock is used; during the springgrowth flush; and during summer, if weather isdry or soils are shallow.Commercial growers in Hawaii use either 16-16-16 or 10-20-20 N-P-K fertilizer, applied inFebruary or March when new shoots emerge. Ex-cessive nitrogen fertilization will force vegetativegrowth, so moderate fertilizer applications aredesirable.Diseases of PersimmonCrown gall (Agrobacterium tumefaciens)Anthracnose (Colletotrichum sp.)Fruit drop (physiological causes, including exces-sive shoot growth, insufficient sunlight, andlack of pollination)Insect Pests ofPersimmonMealybugsAnts (associated with mealybugs)ThripsMitesFruit fliesSelectedReferencesK W. Opitz and J. H. LaRue. 1975. Growing per-simmons. Division of Agricultural Sciences,University of California, Berkeley. LeafletNo. 2457.8 pp.Figure 5. 'Hachiya' persimmon.Ficure 7. Section of a persimmon orchard duringthe dormant period.H. Kitagawa and P. G. Glucina. 1984. Persim-mon culture in New Zealand. New ZealandDepartment of Science and Industrial Re-search, Science Information PublishingCentre, Wellington. Information Series No.159. 74pp.Figure 6. 'Hachiya' fruit, cluster.Figure 8. Fruiting persimmon tree with branchesbraced.Issued in furtherance of Cooperative Extension work, Acts of May 8 and June 30,1914, in cooperation with the U. S. Department of Agriculture.Noel P. Kefford, Director and Dean, Cooperative Extension Service, College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources, University of Hawaiiat Manoa, Honolulu, Hawaii 96822. An Equal Opportunity Employer providing programs and services to the citizens of Hawaii without regard torace. color. national origin, or sex. 3/89

Persimmon

http://scholarspace.manoa.hawaii.edu/bitstream/10125/7738/1/CFS-PERS-3A.pdf

Persimmon

Abstract

Similar works

Full text

Available Versions

ScholarSpace at University of Hawai'i at Manoa