Hume — The Flowers of Diospyros Kaki L. F. 133 



iimpli" and ''Costata," — (2) those on which staminate 

 flowers occur sporadically, — examples, "Taber's No. 23," 

 *'Okame,"and "Taber's No.l29." And (3) those which 

 bear staminate flowers as re^larly as the trees bloom — 

 examples, "Masugata," "Siang" (S. P. I. No. 21910) 

 and the "Eagle Lake Tree." New "Sien" (S. P. I. No. 

 22368) and S. P. I. No. 27037 are not referred to these 

 latter groups, as they are recent introductions and 

 have come under observation this season (1913) for the 

 first time. It is of course entirely possible that in China 

 and Japan there are varieties of persimmons belonging 

 to the species D. Kaki which bear staminate flowers 

 only, and there is a remote though improbable chance 

 that there are trees of which the flowers are all perfect. 



The Importance of Pollen Bearing Flowers. 



Since the Japan persimmons, D. Kaki, were introduced 

 into the United States about forty years ago, there has 

 always been something erratic in their behavior. It has 

 been a common complaint on the part of nearly every 

 one who has attempted their culture, that though the 

 trees bloomed profusely, the young fruits dropped off 

 shortly after the flowering season. At this period, each 

 year, the ground under most trees is often literally cov- 

 ered with the calyces and ovaries of the flowers. At 

 harvest time practically no fruit remains to be gathered. 

 Here and there, for some hitherto unknown reason a tree 

 or group of trees would hold a crop. This phenomenon 

 is now known to be largely due to the unnoticed sporadic 

 production of staminate flowers. 



Needless to say, many reasons have been offered for 

 the trees not bearing fruit. By some it was said to be 

 due to improper cultivation, insufficient fertilizer, and 

 lack of moisture. Others held just the opposite. Some 

 even said it was peculiar to certain varieties, and that 

 the grow^th of the calyces crowded the young ovaries off. 

 All sorts of remedies to meet these different theories 

 Avere advanced and tried, but in spite of all efforts to 



