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Notes on the Native Seedless Persimmon. 



( Preliminary Report.) 



By William L. Woodburn. 



In the vicinity of Indiana University there are a number of persim- 

 mon trees (Diospyros Virginiana L.) which during the year 1908 bore 

 large numbers of seedless fruits. No single tree, however, was found which 

 bore only seedless berries, while four or five bore fruits nearly all of which 

 contained seeds. The size of the seedless berries, their distribution on the 

 tree, the time of ripening and their flavor as compared with those contain- 

 ing seeds was noted. A preliminary study of the embryology of the per- 

 simmon was also made. Entire ovaries were fixed in chromic-acetic acid 

 and embedded in paraffin for sectioning, and later as the ovaries hardened 

 ovules were similarly prepared. As later developments showed, the ma- 

 terial was taken from a part of the tree which bore for the most part 

 seedless berries, so that the development of the embryo was not observed. 

 This led to a careful observation of the distribution of the seedless per- 

 simmons on the tree. 



As the persimmons matured it was noted that the lowest branches 

 of the tree from which the material was collected bore mostly seedless 

 fruits, while somewhat higher were a few with seeds, and in the top of 

 the tree the majority contained seeds. The seedless fruits on this tree 

 were somewhat smaller than those containing seeds. Another tree younger 

 than the one just mentioned bore throughout the branches berries with 

 and without seeds, although more seedless below than above. On this 

 latter tree there were many seedless fruits quite as large as the others. 



The following questions naturally arise: Why did one tree produce 

 persimmons on the lowest branches which were practically all seedless, 

 while the majority on the upper part produced seeds? Did fertilization 

 depend on the transfer of pollen from some other tree bearing only stanii- 

 nate flowers, since all the flowers examined contained sterile stamens, but 

 these were from a part of the tree which bore only seedless berries? Or 

 were there perfect flowers present which produced all the fruits containing 



