In the late fall months when I drive up the turnpike to visit my family in Tulsa, the scenery is always picturesque, as leaves begin to fade from green into their brilliant hues of autumn. One species in particular stands out at that time, but this has nothing to do with fall foliage (although it does put on quite the show in that department too). Every so often in the midst of the Cross Timbers forest by the road I will spot a tree dotted with bright orange fruits that illuminate from the sea of bare limbs. If I were on foot in the woods I would also notice the distinctive, square bark that looks like stacks of blocks, a very unique feature of this species.

Historically valued for its edible fruit, use in textiles and furniture and later, golf club heads, common persimmon is an Oklahoma native tree reaching 60 feet tall with a 20 to 35 foot spread. Typically a bottomland tree in the wild, persimmon is also drought tolerant and well adapted to urban conditions. It boasts small, yellow, bell-shaped flowers in late spring that attract quite the crowd of pollinators. The thick leaves are glossy and dark green. Fruit valued by wildlife is also edible for humans, but if you decide to go out foraging make sure it’s ripe! Persimmons if eaten before prime ripeness are extremely bitter – sometimes a frost is needed to really force fruits into ripening. If you’re thinking of adding one to your landscape try to plant away from paved surfaces, as the fruit can be messy to clean up.

As water conservation is a continuous concern, it makes sense to seek out native species that are already adapted to our environmental conditions for planting in the landscape. Native trees such as persimmon can add many aesthetic features with a natural look, and benefits to the local fauna.