The Mystical Fruit with a ‘Jelly Stage’!

"A Plant a Day"- Japanese Persimmon, Asian Persimmon (Diospyros kaki)-

No matter how you feel about eating the fruit, The Japanese Persimmon is an amazing plant. The Japanese Persimmon is the common (most economically important) persimmon found in trade, and is an East Asian native among the oldest cultivated plants with known cultivation for over 2,000 years. The Japanese Persimmon grows up to about 35 feet tall with deciduous leaves and the unusual feature of fruits that ripen after the leaves have mostly dropped—making it very ornamental in the late fall when not much else in the garden looks good. Also very unusual, the trees are either male or female or change their sexual expression from year to year!

There are four basic types of varieties, which depend on tannin solubility and presence of seeds (affecting the ripeness needed for a sweet flavor). Widely grown is the ‘Hachiya’ variety that needs to be so ripe that it is like a jelly before it is sweet and edible. On the other hand is the variety called ‘Fuyu’ that doesn’t contain tannins when firm and therefore is sweet and can be consumed more like an apple (my favorite!). Persimmon fruits are good sources of potassium and beta-carotene. The persimmon leaf is also used to make a healthful herbal tea which is caffeine-free and bitter tasting. The seed has been roasted and used as a coffee substitute. The Persimmon wood is also favored for its durability and beautiful grain, and used for making a variety of implements and furniture.

The Japanese Persimmon is also revered as a medicinal plant—in China and around the world it is thought of as almost mystical with great abilities. In Korea it is renowned for scaring away tigers, in the Ozarks its seed shape can foretell the coming winter, and even its scientific name “Diospyros” is derived from the Grecian for “Wheat of Zeus”. The uses of the fruit depend on its ripeness (and thus astringency), but it is mainly for promoting healthy digestion, respiratory complaints, heart and eye health and aches and pains. The unripe fruit pulp is used in cosmetics and face masks for its firming properties, and other plant parts have additional medicinal uses. In clinical and preclinical study Japanese Persimmon fruit has been found to decrease LDL cholesterol. Additional activities found through scientific investigation include anti-inflammatory, hyportensive, antioxidant, antiobesity, antiglaucoma, and anticancer activities.  

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**This content is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not intended to provide medical advice or to take the place of such advice or treatment from a personal physician.

Photo by Olegivvit