90 STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



T. T. Lyon: Why is it that plum trees often drop their leaves? 



Prof. Cook: I can see no insect cause. 



Prof. Beal: I think it is a small fungus that causes them to drop. Such 

 leaves are full of what appears like shot holes, in which a fungus is found. 



Prof. Bailey : Prof. Arthur of the New York Experiment Station has found 

 the summer spores of this fungus, but not the resting spores. He thinks these 

 are produced in the leaves after they fall. He desires that specimens of leaves 

 which have prematurely fallen be sent him. 



Kizo Tamari, a student of the Agricultural College from Japan, then read 

 the following paper on 



JAPANESE PERSIMMON. —(Diospyrus Kaki.) 



Persimmon is not a new fruit to this country; it grows in the south and the 

 fruit is known as "American date." It is said that the native persimmon is 

 also met with in the western states and as far north as Michigan, and is one of 

 the most delicious of the native fruits. 



Mr. S. Truda was the first to import our persimmon into this country ; he 

 tells me that the importation cost him considerable pains and he further states 

 that the fruit was not appreciated at first by the Americans at Tokio, being 

 discarded in America as not eatable; but at present the fruit is well-known by 

 every pomologist in this country and is called the Japanese persimmon. 



The Japanese persimmon (D. Kaki) is botanically regarded as a different 

 species from the American persimmon (D. Virginiana) but it seems to me that 

 this distinction is not practically accurate, for, although our Kakis are gener- 

 ally large, yet there is a variety called "Mame Kaki " which is about the size 

 of the grape, or they may be distinguished by the delicious taste, yet there are 

 some varieties which are very astringent to the taste and would never change in 

 this respect even after long exposure to frost. As far as the shape and size of 

 fruit is concerned, our Yamokaki or wild persimmon is just like the American 

 persimmon. 



There are a great many varieties of persimmons in Japan, the fruit is both 

 large and small and in shape it is globular, conical, square, or flat as well 

 as sweet or astringent in taste. We may conveniently classify them accord- 

 ing as they are sweet or astringent, and both groups include many varieties. 



The sweet varieties can be used when the green color is changed into red, 

 dotted with black spots and brownish streaks in the pulp; but some fruits are 

 quite sweet in green state, and attain their astriugency before they are fully 

 ripe, when we say, the fruits are backed. These sweet varieties are not grown 

 as much as the astringent varieties, because the fruits are not large enough, 

 and the trees are not prolific ; moreover, the astringent varieties can be easily 

 changed to a sweet taste. The finest fruits are among the astringent varieties 

 (sweet — Chusio, Giboshi, Kanro, Gosio; astringent — Hochiya, Yemon, Hako, 

 etc.) 



The seedling is so slow to bear fruit that a proverb among Our pomologists 

 is "Momo Kuri San nen, Kaki hach nen," means peach, chestnut for three 

 years, persimmons for eight y< j ars, when we have fruits first from seedlings. 

 The plants are commonly propagated by grafting in the spring, and the most 

 important hints for persimmon growing are to plant deep in ground, because 

 persimmons do not put forth as many roots as other fruit trees, and, therefore, 



