Diospyros nitida seed

LATIN NAME: Diospyros nitida

COMMON NAME: Shiny Ebony

The shiny ebony is a handsome, upright, round-headed, evergreen tree of the warm forests, and its fine, oval or lance-shaped, glossy, dark-green leaves and its small, inconspicuous, greenish-white flowers, followed by the small, round, yellow or orange, fleshy, edible fruits, have made it a treasured and fine tree of the region. It grows as an upright, round-headed, evergreen tree, reaching up to twenty metres or more, with the upright, branching trunk bearing the alternate, oval or lance-shaped, pointed, glossy, dark-green leaves and, through the warm months, the small, inconspicuous, greenish-white flowers, followed by the small, round, yellow or orange, fleshy, sweet, few-seeded fruits. It is a species of the flowering tree in the ebony family, and it is native to the warm forests of the southern China, while it is prized for its fine, edible fruits and its fine timber, and it is known as the shiny ebony.

In the ebony family it is the glossy-leaved, yellow-fruited tree of the warm forests, a cousin of the persimmon that carries both a sweet fruit and a dense timber.

Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology

The shiny ebony holds a place in the food-science papers of the warm forests, where the small, round, yellow or orange fruits are studied for their fine, sweet value as a wholesome fruit of the region. The wood scientists have also looked at the dense, valued timber that has served the fine crafts of the region, and the botanists have mapped its place in the ebony family and the warm forest flora. It is a tree that gives the kitchen and the workshop in one, and the growers of the warm-region fruit trees keep it in their catalogues.

Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications

In the warm garden, the shiny ebony is the glossy tree of the fruit harvest. Its small flowers feed the insects, its yellow or orange, fleshy fruits feed the birds and the wildlife, and the round-headed, evergreen crown gives the garden shade and shelter through the year. The sweet fruits are enjoyed as a fine fruit of the region, and the dense, dark timber serves the crafts of the region. Glossy, yellow-fruited and useful.

The seeds come out of the yellow fruits — clean them off and give them a spell of cold, damp rest in a bag of moist sand in the fridge, then sow them shallowly in pots of loamy, free-draining soil, keep them moist and set the pots in a bright, sheltered spot, and the first shoots will come up steadily.