What is the sex of volunteer persimmon?

[Shufigo]

I have 3 young (5 - 8 year old) native persimmon trees, sex not yet known. This year they are sending up volunteer saplings, about a dozen in total. My question is, will the volunteers be true to the sex of the host tree? If their sex will be random, I'm a happy camper!! If they'll be duplicates of the host tree, I'm at the mercy of the law of averages on my host trees. I'm not eager to graft them female because my persimmon graft rate has been abysmal and I'm dependent on the generosity of forum members for scions. Any info will be welcome.

 

[Mennoniteman]

Your persimmon experiences pretty much mirror mine. I'm also at the mercy of nature because of a string of bad luck with grafted trees.

 

[Native Hunter]

They will be the same sex as the host tree. However, you can just go ahead and topwork any persimmon before you know the sex. You don’t have to wait. I suggest topworking some of the shoots and leaving some. That way you have the best of both worlds, because you know that you will have a female regardless of the outcome. If the native shoots that you don't topwork turn out to be females, you can keep the one you like best - or maybe keep more than one if they aren't too crowded.