The persimmon is a fruit that enchants the sector of the population that likes ripe fruit. Many take it even with a straw or directly absorbing the juice of the fruit. Its taste is unmistakably sweet and it is a delicacy for many people. Today we teach you how to avoid going to the supermarket to buy them to grow in your garden or orchard. In addition, we teach you its properties and to make persimmon jam. 

CULTIVATION AND PROPERTIES OF PERSIMMON ( DIOSPYROS KAKI )

Everyone has been talking about persimmon but we may not have seen what its tree looks like. It is known as Diospyros kaki  ( Ebanaceae family ), a deciduous fruit tree that produces a large number of enormously showy fruits. At the world level, Spain is not one of the largest producers (Japan, China, the United States …) but at a European level, together with Italy, since we enjoy a good climate for the development of this crop.

Within Spain, the Valencian Community is the one that has the most to say in this regard and you will surely be familiar with the Ribera del Xúquer denomination of origin , which grew spontaneously through seeds (a genetic variation resulting from this great form of reproduction.

PERSIMMON CLIMATOLOGY

The cultivation of Diospyrus kaki is typical of temperate zones . We can also include as an ideal area those that belong to the Mediterranean, such as the Valencian Community area. On the other hand, it also needs a minimum of cold hours in winter. This will ensure a total fall of all the leaves (remember that it is deciduous) and a new sprouting with the arrival of heat that will produce magnificent fruits.

As for the cold, being in vegetative rest it has a high resistance to frost , but as with most fruit trees, once flowering has started, intense cold will greatly harm it.

SOIL CHARACTERISTICS

As for the texture characteristics and the rest of the soil properties, it is not an indispensable factor , since it usually grows in different types of soil without major problem. When we choose one, we are left with those loose and deep , with a medium clay texture.

Before planting there are a series of recommendations that we are going to comment on. First, it is best to do a deep work on the ground or the hole where we want to place our tree, regardless of the size. You have to work hard since we have to go below 50 cm.

We will leave the soil loose and we will incorporate a bottom fertilizer composed of organic matter, either vegetable or animal. The amount varies depending on the size of the hole, a mixture of this compost with the bottom soil (a few kg) is more than enough.

If you are going to plant more than one tree, it is important that you leave enough space between them. Plan the separation so that when they are adults there is enough lighting and aeration between their branches. The separation of 5 meters is ideal. Normally, in large farms of Diospyrus kaki these plantation frames are seen, 5 × 5 or 6 × 5, depending on the variety chosen.

IRRIGATION AND FERTILIZER CHARACTERISTICS

We pass to an interesting part of the cultivation of persimmon. We have already seen how we have to prepare the soil to receive the planting of this tree and now we are going to see its maintenance (later we will see a clarifying photo of how the persimmon pruning has to be carried out.

Starting with irrigation, it  must be considered that this fruit tree is used to drought. In fact, there are dry crops, whose productions are, as is logical, much more scarce than irrigated cultivars. Water is important, and a logical use of it will bring great productions.

Persimmon requires continuous irrigation throughout the year, the best system being automated drip irrigation, because it provides a constant flow that leaves the entire root surface moist. However, we must not commit excesses, since they pay dearly here.

Persimmon is quite sensitive to excess moisture and root rot, (especially in summer, despite the fact that it is very hot). Therefore, we completely forget about waterlogging .

Continuing with the fertilization,  the organic incorporations around the trunk at the end of the winter stage are very effective and increase the vigor of the tree. For mineral fertilizers you can follow this example:

• Nitrogen fertilizer: 0.5 kg / tree
• Phosphorus Fertilizer: 0.2 kg / tree
• Potassium fertilizer: 0.35 kg / tree

Values ​​measured taking into account a planting framework of 400 trees / ha according to IVIA.

RIPENING OF FRUITS ACCORDING TO THE VARIETY OF PERSIMMON

• Bright Red Variety: 2nd half of October
• Tone Wase variety: 2nd half of September
• Tomato variety: 1st half of October
• Fuji variety: October
• Jiro variety: 2nd half of October
• Hana Fuyu variety: 2nd half of October
• Cal Fuyu variety: 2nd half of October
• O’Gosho variety: 1st half of November
• Kaki variety Type: 1st half of November

POSSIBLE PESTS AND DISEASES

All fruit trees are always visited by an insect that wants to take advantage of the nutrients or shelter that the fruits, leaves or branches can provide. We can find the following pests in the cultivation of persimmon:

• Caparreta
• Cotonet

• Cryptoblabes gnidiella

• Barreneta
• Ceratitis capitata

Diseases:

• Root rot ( Armiralliella mellea )
• Mycosphaerella nawae

PRUNING THIS INTERESTING TREE

Pruning persimmon is an essential element to guarantee optimal fruit production . Formation pruning is done when the tree is in a vegetative stop , in winter. On the other hand, green pruning, when the tree is in production, in the spring months seeks to clarify the small fruits to allow the growth of the rest, to eliminate non-productive branches or shoots or to blunt certain branches.

WHAT IS THE FAMOUS PERSIMMON PERSIMMON?

If there is a commercial brand of persimmon that sounds familiar to us, it is the persimmon . This tough meat variety is a trademark of the Bright Red variety. It differs from other varieties in that it is eaten with a spoon or knife, as if it were an apple. It is grown in the Valencian Community (thanks to its perfect climate).

The difference is that the persimmon persimmon is removed from the tree before its optimum maturity. This has the disadvantage that since the meat is tough, it is also very astringent, to the point that it is inedible. It has to undergo a process of disarray.

Although it is a strange word to say, it is like the degreening of citrus fruits, which are stored in giant chambers with high ethylene content (which makes the fruit ripen).

NUTRITIONAL PROPERTIES OF PERSIMMON

This is what you are incorporating into your body every time you eat 100 grams of this delicious fruit:

• Calories: 127
• Lipids: 0.4 g
• Cholesterol: 0 mg (ok!)
• Sodio: 1 mg
• Potasio: 310 mg
• Carbohydrate: 34 g
• Proteins: 0.8 g
• Vitamina C: 66 mg
• Iron: 2.5 mg
• Calcium: 27 mg

As you can see, the properties of persimmon are very broad, nutritionally speaking. As they have a lot of sugar, they provide healthy calories, with low lipid content and high vitamin content.

Fuente: United States Department of Agriculture.

AND TO FINISH, WE MAKE A PERSIMMON JAM!

Persimmon jam is an ideal method of preserving this climacteric fruit. The production process is so simple that you cannot afford to miss it. Take note of how to make this persimmon jam!

Ingredients:

• 1 kg of ripe persimmons
• 1 kg of sugar
• seasonings to taste (orange zest, cinnamon, vanilla, etc.)

We put all the ingredients in a container and let them mix for several hours. Once we see that they are ready we put them in a pot over low heat and let it cook for an hour while we stir from time to time. Once it is cooked and with the appearance of jam (that the mixture has thickened) we transfer it to sterilized jars. A trick, if there are too many lumps, is to pass it through the blender , so the result will be much more homogeneous.