Well, no, that's not true, all my trees are in pots including the persimmons, and 2 of my 3 persimmons fruited the first year after I planted them. Since you only took a picture of the pot and not the branches, it's hard to say, but the tree is probably too small to carry 30 fruit. And the pot in the photo is very small, my trees are in 1/2 wine barrels. So it could be dropping fruit because it is stressed from heat or cold or small pot size, or because it is trying to keep the right amount of fruit for its size, or because you are overwatering it. But don't be too unhappy, your tree is better off because persimmons will over-set fruit. Mine did and it snapped at the base because I hadn't thinned and left too many fruit on it, it got too heavy, and instead of dropping fruit, the tree trunk just split. Carla in Sac

Hi guys, theme is old and I do not know if it's still active. I would like to get in touch with Kristian from Hungary and I was wondering if somebody's got his e-mail? I want to have hardy kaki (persimmon) in my backyard but can not find it in my country. Would seek in neighboring and Hungary is one of them, by the way I am from Serbia. I have tried to contact people from Bulgaria but with no success. So if someoene has some contact or knowledge about hardy persimmon on Balkan please send me. Greetings, Martin.

Gftg, You can cut a branch and place it in a old one gallon milk jug and make sure you add water to it every couple of days. I would duct taped it to the trunk of the smaller tree. In addition, you can also hand pollinated with a fine art brush to ensure some fruits. You can also freeze some pollens if the trees bloom at a different time. You Can also hope for windy days and let the bees to do their job. Lastly, you can watch YouTube and learn how to bark graft. Collect your male scionwoods in late February and wrapping it with moist paper towel and place in a zip lock bag. Put the bag in the refrig until your trees leafed out some time in May then you can start grafting. Make sure you rub off all the new shoots below your graft union every couple of days until the shoots stop. This is important because you want all the nutrients go to feed the scion. Good luck. Tony

@ lucky - Okay okay, I'll order our "Promoting excellence in slacking since..... whenever" t-shirts, complete with Wallyism ("People think I don't have a plan"). Probably get around to it next week :-) . Per your idea - I'd actually wanted to tie the branch up and push it against the trunk when it first broke, but wasn't sure what I could use that would hold the weight (the branch is about 1.5+" diameter at the base? and very long). For now, the propping-up may work, and I might employ some combo of tying/propping to get it through the early fall. Your link for Dr. Reid's blogspot on the stalked buds was VERY helpful. His photos were definitely applicable to my tree. I'll keep a look-out for the narrow angles and bark inclusions from now on, had no idea the tree might be growing itself a ticking time-bomb for a branch junction. @ cckw - Appreciate the extra reassurance that the patient will survive this break and the upcoming surgery! Do narrow angles trap water enough to erode the bark and underlying tissue? Guess that's another thing to watch for. I agree on pruning thoughtfully, but not always timidly, which I'm prone to do. My son and I did some aggressive cutting back on a few plum trees this spring, hoping it'll make them productive.The peaches need re-shaping desperately and will get that as soon as harvest is over in the next two weeks. I'll need guidance on whether or not to prune the pawpaws and pears. But that's another thread or two. I only wish there was a super-glue for trees or a way to instantly weld them back together. :)