Date-plum

Date-plum: how do you recognise it?

Habit

Tree with a rounded to oval crown, 6–10 m tall and 4–6 m wide; moderately fast-growing.

Leaves

Oval to elliptic, 6–12 cm long, glossy dark green, paler beneath; late to leaf out in spring.

Flowers

Small, urn- or bell-shaped, greenish to reddish, in June. Male and female flowers grow on separate trees.

Fruit

Round, 1.5–2 cm, yellow at first, blue-black to purplish-brown when ripe, with a few flat seeds. Edible only when soft and overripe.

Bark

Grey, finely chequered on older trees, as in the persimmon.

Roots

A deep taproot: plant it young, as older trees transplant badly.

Flowering: June · Harvest and fruit: November–December · Plants: March–April and October–December · Pruning: January–February

Why grow it?

• A hardy relative of the persimmon that fruits even after harsh winters.
• A handsome tree with glossy leaves and decorative, chequered bark.
• The small flowers in June are busy with bees.
• After leaf fall the fruits hang on the bare branches: an unusual autumn sight.
• Small, sweet fruits for lovers of unusual fruit, fresh or dried.
• Few diseases and little work: it hardly needs pruning.

Date-plum: where does it grow best?

• Full sun in a warm spot: that is where the fruit ripens best.
• Sand, loam or clay, acid to chalky, as long as the soil is well drained.
• Moderately moist; young trees need water during dry spells in their first years.
• Allow 5–6 m per tree. For fruit you need a male and a female tree, not too far apart.

Light

Sun

Soil type

Sand, loam or clay

Acidity

Not fussy

Moisture

Normal

Size

10 m tall, 6 m wide

Hardiness

Hardy (to -25 °C)

Goes well with

• Persimmon: Its larger relative, for a corner of unusual fruit.
• Medlar: Another fruit you only eat once it is soft and overripe.
• Quince: Another old, graceful fruit tree with autumn fruit.
• Daffodil: Yellow spring flowers beneath the bare crown, before the tree leafs out.

Date-plum: when and how to plant it?

Plant in March–April and October–December.

1. Plant from October to December or in March–April, when the soil is neither frozen nor waterlogged.
2. Choose a young pot-grown tree: because of the taproot, a large or bare-root tree establishes less easily.
3. Dig a hole twice as wide as the root ball and just as deep, and loosen the bottom.
4. Set the tree at the same depth as in the pot, put in a stake on the windward side and tie the trunk loosely.
5. Water in well and repeat during dry spells in the first year.
6. Spread compost or wood chips around the trunk, but not against it.

Care

Watering

Weekly in dry weather for the first two years; after that only during long droughts, especially when it is carrying fruit.

Feeding

A layer of compost around the tree in March. Too much nitrogen gives lots of leaves and little fruit.

Mulching

A layer of wood chips keeps the soil around young trees moist and weed-free.

Pollination

Plant a male and a female tree. Buy trees of known sex if possible: seedlings only show it after several years.

Harvesting

Leave the fruit on the tree until after the first frosts, or pick it in November and let it ripen indoors until soft and wrinkled. Eat it fresh or dry it.

Tip: Leave the fruits on the tree until after the first frost, or let them ripen indoors until completely soft and wrinkled: only then does the astringency disappear and do they turn sweet.

Date-plum: when to prune it?

Pruning months: January–February.

When: In January–February, while the tree is bare. It hardly needs pruning.

How:

• Train a young tree with a straight trunk and three to five well-spaced main branches.
• Later, remove only dead, diseased, damaged and crossing branches.
• Remove shoots growing low on the trunk or around the base.
• Do not prune too hard: heavy pruning gives lots of leafy growth and less fruit.

Pruning: when and how · Pruning calendar and basic rules

Propagation

Seed

Take the seeds from ripe fruit, clean them and sow them in a pot outdoors in autumn, or keep them cool and moist in the fridge for 2–3 months and sow in March. You will only know after several years whether a seedling is male or female.

Grafting

Trees of known sex are grafted onto a seedling in spring; this is usually left to a nursery.

Date-plum: how does it get through the winter?

Hardy to −25 °C.

• Very hardy, to about −25 °C: no protection is needed in Belgium.
• It leafs out late, so late spring frosts rarely do any damage.
• Mulch the base of a young tree in its first year against drying out and frost.

Diseases and pests

• No fruit: There is no male tree nearby, or the tree itself is male. Plant a tree of the other sex.
• Astringent fruit: Unripe fruit is very astringent because of tannins. Let it soften after frost on the tree or ripen indoors.
• Fruit drop: Young fruits drop during summer drought. Water during dry spells.
• Birds: Blackbirds and starlings peck at the soft fruit. Harvest in time and let it ripen indoors.
• Slow start: Young trees grow slowly for the first few years, especially after planting. Water and be patient.

Through the year

• January: Formative pruning of young trees. Eat or dry the last fruits.
• February: Prune: remove dead and crossing branches.
• March: Plant. Spread compost around the tree.
• April: Plant. Apply mulch.
• June: Flowering; bees on the flowers. Water young trees.
• August: Water in dry weather to prevent fruit drop.
• October: Fruits colour up. Plant.
• November: Harvest after the first frost or ripen indoors. Plant.
• December: Eat or dry the soft fruit. Plant in mild weather.

Edible and useful

Fruit (November–December)

The small round fruits (1 to 2 cm) turn yellow in autumn and then bluish black. They are only edible once they have bletted after the first frost and are completely soft and wrinkled, in November–December: then they taste sweet, of dates and caramel. Unripe, they are horribly astringent. You need a female tree and usually a male one nearby.

Storing

Let them soften on the tree or on a dish indoors. Soft fruits keep for a week in the fridge; dried, for months.

Caution: Only eat them when completely soft: unripe fruits are full of tannins, which pucker the mouth and in large amounts upset the stomach. Spit out the hard seeds. The tree grows large (up to 10 m): one for a spacious garden.

Eating and using is at your own risk: see the terms of use.

Recipes

• Dried date-plums (Dried · ± 200 g · 15 min + 1 to 2 days drying)

Good for wildlife

Bees

Nectar and pollen for honeybees and wild bees.

Did you know?

• Diospyros roughly means ‘divine fruit’, from the Greek dios, divine, and pyros, wheat.
• The date-plum is widely used as a rootstock for persimmons, because it is hardy and easy to raise from seed.
• The genus Diospyros also includes the trees that yield ebony.