In October I visited Sweet Georgia Fuyu in Glennville. This may be Georgia’s largest commercial persimmon operation and if not, it certainly looked like it. All that bright orange is an amazing sight.

The weekend before, I was at the Forsyth Farmer’s Market in Savannah and bought some persimmon-ginger jam from owner Laura Potts-Wirht, who invited me to come and photograph the orchards.

I had met Laura a few years earlier at a locavore potluck at Janisse Ray and Raven Waters’s Red Earth Farm and she was very enthusiastic about the persimmons.

Presently, there are 20 acres of persimmons with ten more acres being developed. Fuyu Persimmons are a bit firmer and definitely sweeter than the old varities we’re used to in Georgia.

While I’m not personally a fan of the raw fruit, I always loved my grandmother’s persimmon cakes and breads made from the fruit of an old tree at the farm.

I enjoyed talking to the two men who were on-site, grading and preparing the persimmons for shipment. They noted that the harvest was nearly over but that they had been busy throughout the season.

If you’re ever near Glennville, check out the orchards in the early fall. I believe they ship, too.