Northern American Persimmon Seeds

Most Northern of All American Persimmon Seed Sources: Selected For Heavy Production of Fruit, Early Ripening and Winter Hardiness 

Easy To Grow From Seed: Direct Seed or Seedling---------------2026 crop coming along. Ready to go by December 1st, 2026.

This is the most northern of the seed strains in the United States. Starting in the mid-1980's I began to grow out seedling trees for both retail and wholesale use as a conservation tree. I was not aware of its cultivation in Michigan at the time but soon found out that some seed sources were very robust and winter hardy and others not so much. I expanded the plantings surrounding my farm to create a seed source specifically for my short season area which is 200 plus miles north of the most northern stands of wild trees. This turned out to be a good idea as most of the seedlings flourished here and began producing fruit in great abundance. The trees have taken a low of minus 27F in 2019 and likely can grow into zone 4 without winter damage.  Persimmon trees are easy to propagate from seeds and can be direct planted in a garden in the fall or stored using a moist media in the fridge which will give them the dormancy to germinate in the spring. 

The ECOS strain was developed using grafted trees in other plantings in Illinois from the following varieties: Early Golden, John Rick, Yates, Killen, Beaver, Pipher, Morris Burton and others. I also used cannery waste from the Dymples Delight factory for a while. The seedlings were planted out over the course of a decade spaced only 5-10 ft. apart in a row that extended about 2000 feet. The plants were limbed as they grew. They were never sprayed. The fruit was never damaged by bugs or disease. Each of the plantings I did was a surprise in that there were no bad trees really. But of course 50 percent were males with no fruit.  I currently harvest from trees that ripen in September and October and this is the seed source that provided my nursery with seeds for many years.

Because of my  cloudy and cool location of my land in southwestern Michigan, it is far more northern and short season than all the other short season varieties. The reason for that is the land lies 30 miles inland of Lake Michigan in a fruit growing district. The juvenile age is roughly 5-10 years from seedling. Heavy production begins at 15 years or so. Trees fruit when they reach anywhere from 8 to 15 ft tall on average. It averages about 50 percent male and female tree ratio. Some female trees are naturally low in numbers of seeds. Others are smaller fruited and some dry on the tree fully ripe. Each tree is different. 

Here is how to germinate: Plant outside in the fall 1 inch deep in sandy soil. Full sun is fine. Fairly competitive against grass and can be sown like beans in drills 6 inches apart.  Plunk a couple of seeds per hole. Very easy. Seeds sprout late roughly in late May here and they rarely get frost damage. Seedlings are frost and browse resistant. Personally I have never had problems with rodents consuming them in the seed beds. In general, seed establishment is low in the wild only because the fruits are consumed and the seeds stay on the surface of the soil. They have to be slightly covered to germinate properly. This is not an acorn type of germination with excessive resources in the seed embryo. 

For the refrigerator method: Store in the fridge 33-38 F in lightly moist Canadian Peat Moss for 90-120 days, then put at room temperature. Seeds will then start sprouting from upwards to 30 days. Do not let the seeds dry out in this process. Rarely will they rot in the plastic bag but at the same time do not flood the media with water. Germination is slow but sure with this species and you can direct plant the sprouted ones outside. Rarely will rodents bother them. 

FOR LARGE QUANTITIES OF 50 POUNDS OR MORE PLEASE INQUIRE USING THE CONTACT FORM ON THE FRONT OF THE WEBSITE TO SCHEDULE PICK UP OR DELIVERY. PREORDER ONLY.

More information on the wonderful American Persimmon and the Seeds it Produces:

1000 seeds per pound depending on the seed selection. Processing persimmon seed even with a seed processor takes patience to do it right. The fruit is highly perishable after harvest and can quickly ferment killing the embryo. I do it in four stages. The first three stages involve removing the pulp and letting the seed rest in trays for a few days each time. The seed is then washed with Dr. Bronners Eucalyptus soap and dried a little to toughen up the outside leather coat of the seed. This pretty much stops all mold in refrigeration storage while at the same time keeps the seeds from over drying and killing the embryo that way.  Another aspect often not addressed is the southern seed sources used which might be good in Missouri but not so good in Michigan or other cold and cloudy northern areas. Northern seed sources are not commercially produced or cultivated outside of the southern ranges.  Since it is a wild crop and in fairly good abundance in North America, the cost of the seeds for commercial use in nurseries is very low and hasn't changed much since the mid 1980's. This highlights the importance of creating new seed sources under cultivation and to make it profitable to the farmer who decides to produce woody plant seeds. It is the same with prairie seeds or specialty rootstock seeds.  Wild trees in a known location can be very valuable seed sources if people recognize them and process the seeds carefully. (With or without Dr. Bronners.)

Just another day in the northern range. Pruning day.