I tried Prok this season from a friends orchard and I wasn't impressed by the flavor as it lacked over all character and sweetness. However the texture was nice compared to some of the other american persimmons i've tried, as well as the size. It was definitely more firm than others. I have heard from some sources that Prok has some asian in it, but I don't know if this is true. Here is a picture of one: http://www.flickr.com/photos/25212487@N04/6224647515/in/photostream I also tried a claypool selection from another friends farm and again, compared to some of the other persimmons I've tried(which I'll explain next), it lacked over all flavor complexity. However it was sweeter than Prok. Here is a picture of that...unfortunately I don't remember the cultivar name, probably because it consisted of a few numbers and was easy to forget. Anyways, it was a claypool selection: http://www.flickr.com/photos/25212487@N04/6271281968/in/photostream My best american persimmon experiences were all at Oikos Tree Crops in southwest, MI where I spent several months examining the american persimmons trees planted there. All of which are seedlings from good selections, i.e. yates, morris burton, etc. Ken Asmus has wonderful seedling planting with over 500 mature trees. There is incredible variation in fruit size, color, texture, flavor, and ripening time. Some don't even ripen in some years. We are working on developing a selection of cultivars from this planting that will be grafted and hopefully available in the nursery trade. These will be some of the northernmost american perisimmon selections, which is great for folks like me in MI where ripening can be a problem. One tree in particular was a seedling of Morris Burton and had AMAZINGLY delicious fruit with very high sugar content and a delectable flavor with butter scotchy notes..by far the sweetest I have ever tried. The flesh on this variety was a rich reddish color...very beautiful. Here is short video of it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iofe3u5pruY&list=UUsSu_6ip07ywsY37D35Cm8w&index=10&feature=plcp Out of the seedling population we also found a tree that produces blue skinned fruit. And not just a touch of blue but very blue! Here is a nice picture of it: http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4083/5167939059_56e3a070e3_z.jpg If you're in Michigan or a similar climate where ripening can be an issue I would consider planting some seedlings from Oikos Tree Crops if you have the space. Sorry I don't have more info about specific cultivars, will have more to come. Cheers!

Thanks for the responses. After doing some more research you are both right. I found a very good link that clearly shows the differences between the two. Very pretty tree in the fall (Unfortunately the deer love it too)! Here is a link that might be useful: Hornbeam contrasted with Beech Tree

I have two London Planes. They've been in the ground for a year and a half. They both are already showing pretty peeling bark. Supposedly the sycamore family is not noted for fall color but both of mine colored up prettily in an orangish yellow. The Bloodgood went first and now the Columbia looks rather flamelike. It glows against the clear blue sky. I was very surprised because the other planes around here don't color as well. Maybe I watered them better? They certainly grew a lot this year. I don't know but I am very pleased with them. It's very windy here and the sweet gum trees get stripped before they can color well. The planes do a better job of holding their leaves while they're coloring.

Awesome pics everyone! I feel like I'm in a different country with the grass now going dormant. Doesn't help that we're having winter like temps. We got 1.5" of rain a few days ago so that helps going into winter. Oh fun...looks like 1-2 of snow tomorrow morning now that I'm checking the weather. Sometimes we don't get that until mid December.