The persimmon is the edible fruit of a number of species of trees in the genus Diospyros. The most widely cultivated of these is the Oriental persimmon, Diospyros kaki. Diospyros is in the family Ebenaceae, and a number of non-persimmon species of the genus are grown for ebony timber. In 2019, China produced 75% of the world total of persimmons.
Ebony is a dense black/brown hardwood, most commonly yielded by several species in the genus Diospyros, which also contains the persimmons. Ebony is dense enough to sink in water. It is finely-textured and has a mirror finish when polished, making it valuable as an ornamental wood. The word ebony comes from the Ancient Egyptian hbny, through the Ancient Greek ἔβενος, into Latin and Middle English.
The Ebenaceae are a family of flowering plants belonging to order Ericales. The family includes ebony and persimmon among about 768 species of trees and shrubs. It is distributed across the tropical and warmer temperate regions of the world. It is most diverse in the rainforests of Malesia, India, tropical Africa and tropical America.
Diospyros is a genus of over 700 species of deciduous and evergreen trees and shrubs. The majority are native to the tropics, with only a few species extending into temperate regions. Individual species valued for their hard, heavy, dark timber, are commonly known as ebony trees, while others are valued for their fruit and known as persimmon trees. Some are useful as ornamentals and many are of local ecological importance. Species of this genus are generally dioecious, with separate male and female plants.
Diospyros virginiana is a persimmon species commonly called the American persimmon, common persimmon, eastern persimmon, simmon, possumwood, possum apples, or sugar plum. It ranges from southern Connecticut to Florida, and west to Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Iowa. The tree grows wild but has been cultivated for its fruit and wood since prehistoric times by Native Americans.
Diospyros mespiliformis, the jackalberry, is a large dioecious evergreen tree found mostly in the savannas of Africa. Jackals are fond of the fruit, hence the common names. It is a member of the family Ebenaceae, and is related to the true ebony and edible persimmon.
Diospyros kaki, the Oriental persimmon, Chinese persimmon, Japanese persimmon or kaki persimmon, is the most widely cultivated species of the genus Diospyros. Although its first botanical description was not published until 1780, D. kaki is among the oldest cultivated plants, having been in use in China for more than 2000 years.
Diospyros discolor is a tree of the genus Diospyros of ebony trees and persimmons. Its edible fruit has a skin covered in a fine, velvety fur which is usually reddish-brown, and soft, creamy, pink flesh, with a taste and aroma comparable to a peach. It is indigenous to the Philippines, where kamagong usually refers to the entire tree, and mabolo or tálang is applied to the fruit.
Diospyros humilis, commonly named Queensland ebony, is a small eastern Australian tree found throughout Queensland and extending into Northern New South Wales and the Northern Territory. The plant is most commonly found in coastal and semi-arid zones in vine scrubs, brigalow woodlands and other locales with infrequent fire.
Diospyros pentamera is a common rainforest tree in the Ebony or Persimmon family (Ebenaceae) growing from near Batemans Bay in New South Wales to the Atherton Tableland in tropical Queensland, Australia. It is commonly known as the myrtle ebony, black myrtle, grey plum or grey persimmon.
Diospyros sandwicensis is a species of flowering tree in the ebony family, Ebenaceae, that is endemic to Hawaii. It belongs to the same genus as both persimmons and ebony. Its common name, lama, also means enlightenment in Hawaiian. Lama is a small to medium-sized tree, with a height of 6–12 m (20–39 ft) and a trunk diameter of 0.3 m (0.98 ft). It can be found in dry, coastal mesic, mixed mesic, and wet forests at elevations of 5–1,220 m (16–4,003 ft) on all major islands. Lama and olopua are dominant species in lowland dry forests on the islands of Maui, Molokaʻi, Kahoʻolawe, and Lānaʻi.
Diospyros australis is the most southerly of the group of some 450 ebonies and persimmons. It is a shrub or small tree growing in rainforests of seaward eastern Australia. The habitat is in a variety of different rainforest forms, though not often seen in the cool temperate rainforests. The range of natural distribution is from Durras Lake near Batemans Bay in south east New South Wales, to Atherton in tropical Queensland.
Diospyros texana is a species of persimmon that is native to central, south and west Texas and southwest Oklahoma in the United States, and eastern Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, and Tamaulipas in northeastern Mexico. Common names include Texas persimmon, Mexican persimmon and the more ambiguous "black persimmon". It is known in Spanish as chapote, chapote manzano, or chapote prieto, all of which are derived from the Nahuatl word tzapotl. That word also refers to several other fruit-bearing trees.
Diospyros mabacea, the red-fruited ebony is a rare rainforest tree in the ebony or persimmon family growing in north eastern New South Wales. Listed as endangered by extinction.
Diospyros geminata is a small tree or shrub of dry rainforest, gallery forest and sub tropical rainforest of Australia and New Guinea.
Diospyros malabarica, the gaub tree, Malabar ebony, black-and-white ebony or pale moon ebony, is a species of flowering tree in the family Ebenaceae that is native to the Indian Subcontinent and South East Asia.
Diospyros decandra, is a tropical tree in the ebony and persimmon family. Its flowers are white.
Diospyros dichrophylla (Gand.) De Winter is a Southern African tree belonging to the ebony family of Ebenaceae and closely related to the Persimmon.
Diospyros maritima is a tree in the family Ebenaceae. The specific epithet maritima means "by the sea", referring to the tree's habitat.
Diospyros montana, the Bombay ebony, is a small deciduous tree in the ebony family up to 15 metres (49 ft) tall, distributed all along the Western Ghats of India, Sri Lanka, Indo-China through to Australia.
