Sherwood

'Sherwood' is one of the few important jujubes that originated in the United States rather than being imported. It arose as a chance seedling in Sibley, Louisiana, from the planting of James S. Akin, and was distributed by the late Sherwood Akin, whose name it carries; the parentage is unknown. It stands out for two reasons. First, the tree is thornless and grows into an unusual silhouette — narrowly upright while young, then developing a distinctly weeping habit as it matures, which makes it as much a landscape tree as a fruit tree. Second, it crops heavily with uniform, elongated, sugar-dense fruit that is genuinely good both fresh and dried. Its limitation is season length: it ripens late, so it needs a long, warm autumn to finish.