The Chocolate Persimmon was named 'Chocolate' because of its chocolaty-brown flesh that is a sweet and tasty. This persimmon is also spicy, firm, juicy, dark flecked, and late maturing.
The Chocolate Persimmon is a small to medium, oblong cylindrical fruit with a rounded apex and bright red skin. It has superb flavor and is often the choice of connoisseurs; astringent until ripe. It requires 200 hours of chilling.
Reaching a height of 12 to 16 feet, Chocolate Persimmon does best in areas that have moderate winters and relatively mild summer. Persimmons grown in cooler areas should have full sun with protection from cooling breezes. It is self-fruitful, very productive, and the fruit ripens in November. It grows as a multi-trunked or single-stemmed deciduous tree, and is a lovely ornamental tree with drooping glossy green leaves and branches that give it a flowing, rather tropical look.
The leaves offer fall colors with a wonderful display, turning dramatic shades of yellow, orange, and red. Chocolate is hardy up to zone 8-10. As an attractive ornamental, the Chocolate Persimmon tree fits well in any landscape.