Top Selling Persimmon Variety with Delicious Fruit

Easy to grow and pleasing to the eye, the Fuyu Persimmon tree (Diospyros kaki) offers sweet and delicious fruit that is never bitter! A Fuyu Asian persimmon tastes a bit like a pumpkin crossed with an apple with a ripe texture ranging from a crisp peach to sweet jelly.

The Fuyu’s fruit is medium to large in size with a bright orange color and will keep well for a number of weeks. The fruit begins to ripen in September and completes ripening in October when it is ready to pick. It can remain on the tree until fully ripe. The fully ripe form is a good source of vitamins and minerals including beta carotene and dietary fiber.

The Fuyu bearing age typically takes between 2-3 years to begin to develop deep orange fruit that is acorn shaped. Since our trees are already 1-2 years old they should bear fruit in 1-2 years once planted in the ground. Fuyu fruit is red orange skinned, sweet, and a delight to your tastebuds when fully ripened.

Persimmon trees will grow upright with many lateral branches. Fuyu persimmon leaves are bright green in color but will change to shades of yellows, oranges, and reds during fall while the fruit is still hanging on the tree. This fruit tree has beautiful fall color when most other plants are going into dormancy!

Fun fact: The Fuyu persimmon has been called “divine fruit” from its botanical name Diospyros. This literally means “wheat of Zeus”. It is known as a fruit of the gods and a good choice for any home garden!

Asian Fuyu Persimmon Tree Care

The Asian Persimmon tree prefers full sun exposure and loamy, well-drained soil. It can handle planting areas in partial shade during the afternoon summer heat. The tree has a very long tap root and will require some space to grow its large root system.

This tree’s small form and vigorous growth make the Fuyu Asian Persimmon a great choice for home landscapes. Mature trees don’t produce fruit in sandy soil.

Root growth will take time and Fuyu persimmon trees fertilizer should be applied to help promote new growth. Fertilize once or twice a year with a slow release fertilizer to grow persimmons. These persimmon fruit trees require 36-48 inches of water annually, especially as young trees get established root systems. Once the Japanese persimmon tree establishes in the landscape, it is drought tolerant.

This fruit tree grows best in agriculture plant hardiness USDA hardiness zones 7-10. The tree has slight cold hardiness but cannot handle extremely cold temperatures during the growing season. Mild winters are ok with the Fuyu tree as they are great trees for the southern United States.

Giant Fuyu trees are pest and disease resistant and a great choice for your fruit tree collection. These are not bare root trees. They ship rooted in a container in the soil for the health of the tree.

When to Plant Fuyu Persimmon Tree

The best time of year to plant persimmon trees is in early spring after all danger from frost is gone. Additionally, you can also plant in the fall if growing conditions are right. You want to give the fruit tree enough time to establish roots before winter comes around.

How Big Is Fuyu Persimmon Tree

A mature Fuyu persimmon tree can grow anywhere between 15 and 20 feet tall and rarely exceeds 18-20 feet wide. Regular pruning can maintain your Fuyu persimmon tree size to keep it manageable. Rather than letting your fruit tree grow to the mature height and width, prune in late winter to heights around 8 feet so the fruit can be picked and enjoyed.

Is Fuyu Persimmon Self Pollinating?

Fuyu is self-pollinating – meaning they do not need another tree for cross pollination. However, having another persimmon tree nearby will increase the fruit load meaning more delicious ripe persimmon fruit for you!

When to Pick Fuyu Persimmons

In most locations, persimmons will ripen just before Thanksgiving. You can tell when a Fuyu persimmon is ripe by the color of the fruit and that it is slightly soft. The nearly ripened fruit is amber colored and fully ripe will be bright orange. Fuyu persimmons can ripen off the tree. It may be a good idea to pick unripe persimmons and leave them at room temperature. When you are ready to eat the fruit, you can place it in a brown paper bag and let ethylene gas ripen them (similar to bananas and avocados). The reason to do this is to prevent them from rotting on the tree or from birds or other wildlife devouring their delicious flesh.

How to Eat Fuyu Persimmons

Fuyu persimmon fruit can be eaten fresh off the tree or cooked. The skin is edible but the taste may be acquired. If you don’t like the persimmon taste of the fruit with the skin on, you can peel it off and eat the persimmon fruit unskinned. Fuyu fruit can be eaten whole, cut into quarters, or sliced into rounds. Persimmons can also be cooked and used in baking dishes, sauces, or pureed for puddings and baked into cobblers or crisps. Some people love them so much they will eat them raw or cooked with caramelized brown sugar.

Astringent vs Non-Astringent Persimmons

This specific Asian persimmon is the non astringent type – meaning it can be eaten right from the tree and tastes crisp like an apple. Astringent persimmons, on the other hand, need a few days for fruit to ripen and are soft and nearly mushy before they are ready to eat. Hachiya persimmons are the most common astringent fruit of persimmon.

Astringent varieties and non astringent persimmon varieties are equally delicious and you will need to look up your variety of persimmon to know which one it is. Or just wait until the fruit appears and try one out eaten fresh. You will know once you taste it.

This Fuyu tree is different from the American Persimmon used by the Native Americans that are native to North America. They are widely planted fruits and the medium sized, yellow orange fruit are sure to delight anyone that tastes them!

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