It was mushy and sweet, and he shoved the entire thing in his mouth, greedily. Juice ran down his face and his hands were sticky with pulp.

"Hey," he said, sticking his arm out. 'Hey' is his word for everything from 'what's that' to 'give me.' I gave him another piece, which was quickly devoured. He had a huge grin on his face.

The persimmon didn't last long enough for my husband to try a piece.

Yeah... it was that good. I knew it was ripe when the fruit -- which is a Fuyu variety -- had turned orange and felt soft when I squeezed it gently. We probably could have eaten the fruit if it had still been very firm. The Fuyu persimmon is non-astringent, which means it's still palatable before it's very mushy and ripe. According to Wikipedia, Jiro and Hanagosho are also non-astringent. All of these are oriental persimmons.

I found the Fuyu persimmon tree to be easy to grow. We planted it like any other fruit tree and made sure to water it frequently while it was establishing its roots. We put compost around the base twice a year and keep grass away from the trunk.

My tree produced one fruit last year, which fell off before it was ripe. This year, it's loaded with fruit, most of which are now yellowy-orange in color and firm to the touch.

I've seen Texas persimmons at local nurseries in addition to oriental varieties. The City of Austin Grow green Guide recommends growing Texas persimmons because they are drought resistant and need little extra water once established. They are also really easy to grow in most soils and relatively pest-free.

However, The Texas persimmon is recommended as an ornamental tree, not a fruit tree. I don't think I've ever heard anyone recommend growing a Texas persimmon for its fruit, so there's a trade-off.

At my house, we're all about edible landscapes, so we decided on the Fuyu for its fruit.

It's definitely been worth the effort. Just ask Luke.