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Fruit Tree Availability
Persimmon Jiro Fuyu 5 gallon $45 You won't commonly find persimmon trees at garden centers. This is because persimmon roots rot very easily in compost. Since most container growers insist on growing plants in compost, their persimmon trees are just too easy to kill. 20 years ago we killed just as many persimmon trees as we sold. And most of the trees we sold died also. I was the water boy for the persimmon trees. If I watered them 2 consecutive days their leaves would turn fall colors and die. My father couldn't figure it out. On his family's farm the water table was less than a foot below the surface and the persimmons grew fine. He planted many trees in the heavy Mission Viejo soils and killed quite a few. Today (for the last 10 years), we know what the trees prefer. We grow them in a sand, pumice, peat moss (25-30%) soil mix and keep them moist by watering daily. No type of compost is mixed into the soil. Our annual losses lately have been negligible. Fuyu persimmons are the type with crunchy flesh. Jiro is the most popular cultivar because it is reliably seedless, relatively easy to grow and vigorous. Trees produce fruit in early to mid fall within 1-4 years and produce very heavily when mature. Situate the trees in at least 1/2 day of sun in well-drained soil. My best results occurred when I mixed sand with native soil and created a 6-foot wide mound about 1 foot high at the center. I planted my persimmon tree at the top and watered fairly frequently. The trees grow slowly and don't require much pruning. The trees are quite attractive and the leaves exhibit excellent fall colors before dropping. Persimmons are rooted deeply in Japanese folklore for their apparently addictive nature (people and other animals will fight over them and eat them to the point of being sick). There are over a dozen cultivars of "fuyu" persimmons, but if you don't yet have one, Jiro should be your first choice. Also available this week: apples Anna, Fuji, Granny Smith (1-remaining) apricot Gold Kist avocados Bacon (1), Carmen-Hass (1), Gem, Stewart banana Dwarf Brazilian blueberries Biloxi, Jewel, Jubilee, Paloma, Sunshine Blue cherimoya seedling figs Gary's Strawberry Fig grapes table Flame seedless, Venus seedless grapes wine Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Zinfandel guava Red Malaysian, Tropic White lemon Lisbon mandarin Owari Satsuma, Gold Nugget (1) peach Red Baron pomegranate Angel Red, Wonderful Other edibles this week: cucumber Asian eggplant (3 types) pepper Bell squash Yellow Crookneck, Green & Yellow Zuchini tomatoes Assorted heirlooms plus Juliet, Lemon Boy, Momotaro Herbs this week: basil (many types), fennel, lemon balm, lemon grass, lemon verbena, sweet marjoram, mint, oregano, parsley, rosemary, sage, shiso (red), summer savory, tarragon french, thyme (many types) | 
