Diospyros rhombifolia

The Princess Persimmon, sometimes called the Diamond-Leaf Persimmon, is an edible persimmon species native to southeast China. This plant is relatively unknown in North America, but is quite cold-hardy, ornamental, and easy to grow. While Princess Persimmon is purported to eventually reach twenty or more feet in height, eight feet in ten years is a more realistic expectation in the garden. Due to its dense growth habit, small, rhomboid foliage and showy red-orange and brown-speckled fruit, this variety has gained popularity in bonsai.

The two inch, dreidel shaped fruit is edible, having a flavor similar to many persimmon species if allowed to properly ripen. In its native region, the unripe fruit is used to produce a type of lacquer that is popular in waterproofing fabrics. Princess Persimmon plants are dioecious, having male and female plants, and both are needed to produce fruit. Plants naturally grow in thickets on slopes or in riparian ecosystems beside streams, appreciating partial shade and consistent moisture. This species is not likely to be drought tolerant. Plants are winter deciduous, losing their leaves during the colder months of the year. 

Cold hardy to USDA zone 7a or to 0 degrees Fahrenheit.

For sale are packets of 5 seeds