Persimmon, Kaki

Scientific Name:  Diospyros

Family Name:  Ebenaceae

The persimmon or kaki tree is found in the wild state in some mountainous regions of central and eastern China. Its cultivation is ancient in both China and Japan. The introduction of the persimmon as a fruit tree in the Western World dates back only to the nineteenth century, first in the United States, then France, and finally Italy, as late as 1884. But in less than a century this beautiful autumnal fruit has spread everywhere. Although persimmons become ripe almost at the end of fall, they retain all the characteristics of the most typical summer fruits: sugary, juicy, and colorful. It seems a quirk of nature that, while other plants are disappearing at the approach of winter, the persimmons with their beautiful bright colors can still be seen hanging from the already leafless branches. In some areas, however, the fruit cannot complete the ripening cycle on the plant, so the farmer has to use artificial means to turn the still greenish pulp into its golden perfection. Persimmons have considerable food value, due to their high percentage of glucose and protein. In order to fully appreciate the taste of the fruit, it must be eaten when fully ripe, when all traces of tannic substances have disappeared. It is this that gives the fruit a typically sour taste that, as is often said, sets one's teeth on edge. More for curiosity than practical purposes, as the fruits are bought commercially, and not picked from the plant, they are divided into two groups: those formed by parthenocarpy, that is without being pollinated by the male, and those which form by normal fertilization with the pollen being transported by insects to the female. In the first case the fruits will have no seeds, and, at harvest time will have a consistent pulp with an astringent taste due to the tannic substance in the cells, so they will not be immediately edible. Therefore the fruits have to undergo a process of after ripening (that is, a series of enzymatic reactions which will transform and precipitate the tannic compounds). At the end of this process the fruits will be soft, watery, and sweet, and deep yellow in color. When the fruit forms as a result of pollination it contains from one to eight large seeds; the pulp, even before the harvest, has a good sweet taste and is a deep brown-red color. It is edible even when it has not yet acquired the typical yellow shade which it has when fully ripe. In the groups of the fruits with seeds can be included all the species of persimmon grown in our gardens, that is, those that still ripen on the tree. The presence of seeds is not of concern for common use. In the fruit-growing industry where economic interests are of prime importance, there is a tendency to spread and introduce new varieties of fruits without seeds, obtained by parthenocarpy. This means that because the last stages of maturation take place artificially, the skin does not wrinkle, and the fruit does not lose its attractive appearance. Persimmons are eaten raw or stewed, and are only rarely used in the canning industry. They are commercially cultivated in the southern United States, France, Spain, Italy, and generally around the Mediterranean. They are also known as Japanese medlars, and, more poetically, as "fruit of Jove."  [Bianchini, Francesco, Corbetta, Francesco, Pistoia, Marilena, The Complete Book of Fruits and Vegetables, United States Translation: Crown Publishers, New York, 1976; Originally published in Italy as I Frutti della Terra, Arnoldo Mondadori Publisher, Italy, 1973]

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