CHAPTER LVII: THE PERSIMMONS 



Family Ebenace^ 



Genus DIOSPYROS, Linn. 



Round-headed trees, with zigzag branchlets and no terminal 

 buds; wood hard and close grained. Leaves leathery, entire, 

 simple, alternate, deciduous, flowers dioecious, axillary; stam- 

 inate in cymes, pistillate solitary or paired. Fruit a large, juicy 

 berry, i to lo-seeded. 



KEY TO SPECIES 



A. Leaves 4 to 6 inches long, pointed; fruit i to 2 inches in 

 diameter, orange to brown when ripe. 



(D. Virginiana) persimmon 

 AA. Leaves f to i^ inches long, blunt; fruit \ to i inch in 

 diameter, black when ripe. 



{p. Texana) black persimmon 



The ebony family has five genera, the most important of 

 which is Diospyros. This genus contains 180 species, including 

 among them the two temperate zone trees in America, and others 

 of horticultural importance in Japan and China. The ebony of 

 commerce comes from different tropical species. D. Ebenum, 

 native of Ceylon and the East Indies, produces the most valuable 

 wood. Beside lumber, ebonies furnish fruit trees and ornamentals 

 planted for their lustrous foliage and decorative fruits. Some 

 of the tropical species are grown in Northern greenhouses. 



Persimmon (Diospyros Virginiana, Linn.) — A slender, 

 tall tree with handsome round head, rarely over 50 feet high; 

 twigs angular, often hollow. Bark broken into thick scaly 

 plates, dark grey or brown; twigs reddish, pubescent, becoming 

 grey. IVood very hard, dark brown, with pale sap wood, fine 

 grained, tough, like hickory; not durable in soil. Buds small, 

 pointed, reddish. Leaves alternate, simple, oval, pointed, 4 to 6 



424 



