Persimmon In A Flowerpot - An Interesting Way To Grow Persimmons In Tubs

2024 Author: Sebastian Paterson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:47

The subtropical culture of persimmon can be grown in our region, but in tubs

In recent years, it has become very fashionable to grow fruit plants in tub culture. This is a cross between open field fruit growing and indoor floriculture.

This method has been known for a long time, but it was not widespread, and was most often used for scientific purposes when crossing to develop new varieties (gentle southern plants can only be preserved in this way). With this method of cultivation, small trees, up to 1.5-2 m in height, mainly fruit trees, are grown in flowerpots, and earlier they were grown in tubs, hence the name of the method. In the summer, from May to October, it is desirable to keep them on the street, balcony, loggia, in the spring and autumn - in apartments, winter gardens; and in the middle of winter, if the plants are deciduous, they are removed to the basement, or to any other suitable room with a low positive temperature. Evergreen crops do not need to be harvested. Thus, it is possible to grow southern varieties of apple, pear, grape, many subtropical and tropical tree species, incl. Plants of the genus Diospyros of the Ebony family. It includes about 500 species, mainly tropical plants. Even on the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus, in the subtropics, only three of them can grow. These are the local Caucasian persimmon (Diospyros lotus L.), virgin persimmon (D. virginiana L.) and oriental persimmon, more correctly oriental diospyros (D. kaki Thunb.), Synonyms - persimon, kaki, and also Japanese persimmon, which is not entirely correct as its homeland is not Japan, but China.and also Japanese persimmon, which is not entirely correct, since its homeland is not Japan, but China.and also Japanese persimmon, which is not entirely correct, since its homeland is not Japan, but China.

Wild Caucasian persimmon or common, synonyms: letus, wild date - grows in the mountain deciduous forests of the Caucasus, along the gorges. The plantings are occasionally clean, but more often together with maple, walnut, chestnut, cherry plum, irga and mulberry. Wild persimmon is a very ancient species, originated in the Tertiary period. This tree is up to 30 m high and with a trunk diameter of up to 45 cm. The root system is powerful, the roots are strong. The bark is dark gray, cracking. The wood is light yellow, greenish or dark gray, high-strength, resilient, dense; well polished, not subject to decay. It is highly valued, goes to the production of furniture and technical needs. The Caucasian persimmon is usually dioecious, less often monoecious. Male trees are smaller, branched, and their branches are more fragile.

In female specimens, respectively, the crown is sparse, the branches are thicker, stronger, more elastic. The bark on young branches is light brown or light yellow with white lenticels. Leaves are simple, entire, oblong-elliptical, leathery, dense, dark green above, shiny; from below - pubescent, 5-14 cm long and 3-6 cm wide. They contain a huge amount (up to 3200 mg%) of vitamin C, they are used to make vitamin tea. The branches and leaves are suitable for livestock feed. It blooms after the leaves open in late May - early June. Flowers are dioecious, or polygamous, axillary, on short pedicels, females are solitary, males are arranged in groups of 2-3, they are 5-8 cm long, yellowish or brownish red. The flowers are honey-bearing and attract a large number of bees. Caucasian persimmon bears fruit abundantly and annually,up to 200 kg of fruit can be harvested from a tree. They are small, spherical, 0.8-1.6 cm in diameter, immature at first green, then yellow, then brownish-red. Very ripe fruits - darken, becoming brownish-black with a gray waxy bloom. The pulp is fleshy. They are edible, ripen in October - November. They contain 4-10 seeds, which make up 40% of the berry mass. Even ripe fruits are very tart and astringent, the pulp is fibrous or mealy. Only those touched by the frost, or after lying down and fermenting, become honey-sweet. It is because of the astringency, and because of the large number of seeds, the fruits of the Caucasian persimmon are not eaten often enough, and mainly in dried form. Dried they contain 40% sugars (equally divided by glucose and fructose), 0.5% organic acids (mainly malic), vitamin C, carotene, organic iron compounds. And the taste remindsdepending on the shape, raisins or dates. Dried and milled, they are added to wheat flour, and from this mixture delicious baked goods are baked. From fresh fruits, by boiling squeezed juice, bekmes is made - fruit honey - a very nutritious and even medicinal product.

Caucasian persimmon is almost not damaged by pests and diseases. It is rarely found in nature, it is listed in the Red Book. She was introduced into the culture. Propagated by seeds that can be stored for no more than two years, after which they lose their germination; root suckers, pneuma and root shoots. It is the best rootstock for oriental persimmon. Not demanding on the soil. In nature, it sometimes grows even in areas without soil cover, withstands slight salinity, but nevertheless prefers fertile soils.

In tub culture, it requires soil mixtures rich in humus and frequent feeding. The same is with moisture. It tolerates drought very well when grown naturally. But in flowerpots it requires maintaining the soil in a normally moist state, regular watering. It does not tolerate both stagnant water and dryness of the soil. This persimmon is photophilous, but in nature it grows in shaded areas. It is well cleared of branches. When grown in pots, both indoors and outdoors, requires placement in a well-lit place. For a subtropical breed, it is quite winter-hardy, withstands frosts down to -25 ° C, but at a lower temperature, it freezes heavily. By the method of gradual acclimatization, it could probably be significantly moved to the north, but, unfortunately, no one is doing this yet.

Persimmon virgin- deciduous tree up to 30 m tall, thick trunk, branches sometimes drooping. The wood is valuable, heavy and beautiful. Leaves are simple oval or ovoid, ciliate, shiny above, matte below, up to 14 cm long. Monoecious. Flowers are yellow-green, males are collected in three, females are single. The fruit is a spherical or conical yellow with blush or pale orange berry 2-5 cm in diameter. The fruits are very tasty and sweet, contain up to 32% sugars, and have a pleasant smell of rum. The natural distribution area is the eastern part of the United States from Kansas to Florida. This persimmon is domesticated, it is the most winter hardy of all types of persimmon. Its cultivation has begun in the south of Russia. It is used in landscaping Chernozem areas. To the north, it freezes, but there are prerequisites that it can be significantly promoted to the north by breeding and acclimatization, at leastto the central regions of the country.

Eastern persimmon is a short and medium-sized deciduous tree up to 15 m tall. This is precisely one of the main reasons why it is more suitable for a tub culture than all the above-named species. Long-lasting, life expectancy is about 100 years. Grows wild in the mountains of China. In culture, it has long been widely cultivated both at home and in Korea and Japan. From the latter it came to Europe, therefore it is often incorrectly called Japanese. In Europe, its first description appeared in 1656. Eastern persimmon seedlings were brought to Russia relatively recently, in 1889 from France.