Persimmon rustlers

[Andrew More]

If flash cubes are even available these days they made great igniters.

Rocket engine igniters for model rockets would work and are designed to be wired to a small battery.

[Ronald Blue]

Rocket engine igniters for model rockets would work and are designed to be wired to a small battery.

That's true. Never even gave those a thought.

[Karl Loeblein]

Are your Asian persimmons even ripe enough to eat? My Fuyu persimmons won’t be ripe until early Fall.

[Alex LaZella]

I would for sure just post a sign. I am totally sympathetic to the loss of fruit, I grow it and I want to enjoy it, or at least be asked first but I see persimmon trees wasting fruit all the time around me. It isn't a particularly common taste and perhaps they, erroneously, think nobody is eating them. There are 4 persimmons on a route i frequently walk with my family and after several years of seeing the fruit just smashed on the ground I knocked on the nearest door and was greeted with a "what's a persimmon" response. I am sure you know your neighbors better than I do but perhaps it isnt as malicious as some are making it out. A sign is an easy low confrontation way to announce that you indeed want the fruit. The tactical gear and apple airtags can come later.

[Erik Loza]

I have an aunt who lives in rural San Diego Co. She has a large lot that had a sizeable avocado orchard. There was a period of time in the 90’s where organized gangs would come at night and strip the trees, like what the OP is describing. “Avocado rustling” was such a thing that LE was busting restaurants who bought from ill-gotten suppliers. I guess they must have those little stickers on each avocado? Anyhow, she never caught the rustlers. There was a severe drought a couple of years later. She told me that between the losses from theft and the water bill to keep the orchard going, it was unsustainable. I think she let the trees die and then had them felled. Very sad. OP, I hope you find a solution.

Erik

[Malcolm McLeod]

I like signs

Attachment 482385

+1 - - A distant relation has one at their barn: "If you can read this, you're in range."

[Bruce Page]

You could set a simple alarm/trap. I had forgotten but a former co-worker had trouble with "kid's" stealing his kid's jack-o-lanterns off the front porch. He took a flash cube, an old style mouse trap, and a battery along with a strip of firecrackers. The jack-o-lantern sat on the "set" mouse trap. With some simple wiring it was a simple booby trap. He was asleep on the couch in the living room and was awakened to the fire crackers going off. Even though the jack-o-lantern was busted where it dropped he knew some underwear needed changing. With todays modern cameras it would have been priceless to see the whole thing transpire on video. Mind you this was 30 plus years ago. If flash cubes are even available these days they made great igniters. I'm thinking a perimeter trip wire set up a foot off the ground or so would work great here.

As much as I hate thieves, if anyone was hurt, that approach sounds like a lawsuit that you would lose.

[Myk Rian]

I have a game cam in the back yard. Instead of loading it with 8 AA batteries, I bought a small 12v lead acid battery and plug it into the power port on the cam. It lasts for several months.

[Tom Bender]

You said the tree is 20 feet tall. How are they getting the high fruit?

Maybe you have persimmon locusts or bats.

[Roger Feeley]

You said the tree is 20 feet tall. How are they getting the high fruit?

Maybe you have persimmon locusts or bats.

Thats a really good question. If I’m going to harvest the fruit, I’m going to have to figure it out.

[Maurice Mcmurry]

I remembered this thread and had a good chuckle yesterday as I read Huckleberry Finn again. We can be sure they were not thieved by Huck and Jim as they swore off of crabapples and persimmons by way of recompense.