In-Depth Description
In old fields, common persimmon is a low, shrubby tree, 15 ft. tall. In rich, moist soil the species becomes a large tree, up to 100 ft. tall, with a spreading crown and pendulous branches. Bell-shaped, yellow flowers are hidden by half-grown leaves. Large, oval, mature leaves usually become yellow-green in fall. American Indians made persimmon bread and stored the dried fruit like prunes. Foxes, opossums, raccoons, skunks, deer, and birds also feed on the fruit. The word “persimmon” is of Algonquian origin, while the genus name Diospyros, from the Greek, means “fruit of the god Zeus.”
