Diospyros virginiana, L.

Form.—Height 25-50 feet, diameter 8-14 inches; trunk usually short; crown broad and rounded when not too much crowded.

Leaves.—Alternate, simple, ovate-oblong, 4-6 inches long, smooth, entire, dark-green and shining above, often somewhat hairy beneath.

Flowers.—May-June; polygamous, white or pale yellow; the staminate in 2-3-flowered cymes; the pistillate solitary and borne on short stalks.

Fruit.—Matures after frost in autumn; a spherical yellowish, plum-like berry, containing from 1-8 large seeds, and with large, persistent calyx; astringent when green, sweet and edible when fully ripe.

Bark.—Rough on old trunks, with dark gray ridges which are broken into somewhat rectangular sections.

Wood.—Hard, heavy, close-grained, taking a high polish, brown to black with yellowish sapwood, sometimes streaked with black.

Range.—Connecticut to Florida and west to Texas and Iowa.

Distribution in West Virginia.—Not abundant but common locally in scattered clumps throughout the State, most common east of the Alleghanies. Not found at high elevations.

Habitat.—Thrives best in light sandy soils of bottoms and hillsides.

Notes.—This tree is not important as a wood-producer on account of its small size and scattered distribution. It is well known because of its peculiar fruit.