Texas Persimmon
Diospyros texana
Family: Ebanaceae
Large shrub or small semi-evergreen tree, 15’h&w, but can get taller. Plants can be fully deciduous in cold regions. Small, nectar rich flowers appear in spring. Plants are dioecious (separate male and female plants) so you need to ensure you have both sexes if you want fruit. The female tree produces a round, one-inch fruit that starts out green and ripen to black by late July to September. The trunks become mottled and peeling with age—very attractive.
There are several species of Diospyros that are native in the southern USA and northern Mexico that can probably be grown in our region. See photos below.
Full to part sun, moderate water, hardy to 15°F.
Nectar rich flowers appear in spring and provide for bees and butterflies. Diospyros texana is a host plant for the caterpillars of the grey hairstreak (Strymon melinus) and Henry's elfin (Callophrys henrici), and the fruit is edible for humans, birds and mammals. Many insects and animals use the fruit for food.
The fruit is edible and can be made into preserves or syrups. They are small so it takes a bit to make preserves or used in pudding or custards. The juice used as a dye. The sapwood of Texas persimmon is clear yellow, while the heartwood, found only in very large trees, is black (ebony), like that of the related D. ebenum. The heartwood is hard and dense and takes a high polish. It is used to make engraving blocks, artwork, and tools.
This species is in the Ebanaceae, the Persimmon family. There are 787 species of Diospyros, the majority of which are native to the tropics, with only a few species extending into temperate regions. The generic name Diospyros comes from a Latin name for the Caucasian persimmon (D. lotus), derived from the Greek διόσπυρος : dióspyros, from diós (Διός) and pyrós (πῡρός). The Greek name literally means "Zeus's wheat" but more generally intends "divine food" or "divine fruit". The species, texana, refers to where it is commonly found, Texas.
Native to rocky, open woodlands, slopes & arroyos in Texas (in the Rio Grande Plains, Edwards Plateau, and the southeastern corner of the Trans-Pecos region), and south into Mexico (northern portions of Neuvo Leon, Coahuila, Tamaulipas, and the extreme northeastern part of Chihuahua.
Diospyros texana makes a large shrub or small tree. Photo by plectrudis, iNaturalist
The trunks of this species peels revealing a mottled trunk, photo by Rebecca Cowser, iNaturalist
The Sonoran Persimmon (Diospyros sonorae) is native to Sonora in dry tropical deciduous forest and thornscrub. Its fruits turn yellow when ripe. Photo by Miguel Gastelum, iNaturalist
The Baja Chocolate Sapote (Diosypros californica) is from Baja California is one of the sweetest of the black fruiting persimmons. Photo by Jose Luis Leon de la Luz, iNaturalist
The Cape Wild Persimmon (Diospyros intricata) has sweet honey-like fruits and is very arid-growing. From southern Baja California. Photo by Jim Riley, iNaturalist