Paw Paw

[Tormato]

The catalogs always praise this fruit. I'm looking for the "truthiness" about it.

Tormato

[jungseed]

Thanks for asking this, I'd be interested also.

[amideutch]

I don't know about the fruit but I have read where they have used the leaves to create an extract to fight cancer. Dr. Jerry McLaughlin at Purdue University was doing the research. Ami

[macmex]

I've eaten them, and they are quite good. Probably, the thing which they aren't telling you is that they are not very big producers.

The trees are very ornamental. They look tropical

George

[kygreg]

I think deer and other animals are crazy about them.

[Worth1]

Outside the gardening/woodsman community there are few people that even know the Pawpaw even exists.
As a child growing up in the Ozarks they were scarce and hard to find in the woods.

When someone found a tree in the forest it was a closely guarded secret handed down from generation to generation.
This may sound absurd but it is true, I have seen the best of friends actually try to follow another friend to see if they can track him to the tree.

My father and I tracked our neighbor in the Talihina area in the Ouachita forest in Oklahoma to one.

I remember it like it was yesterday.

There we were in the forest looking for turned rocks broken branches and identifying foot prints and commenting on what person put them there.
“Look there is Bill’s tracks; those are the boots he wears”.
“There are James’s shell casings from his 32-20 where he shot at something; yep we are on the right track”.
“That’s the shots we heard an hour ago”.
Up and down the hills we would go being careful not to get too close and then just before sundown we would find the tree and head back to the house.

Then there was the weekly trip to the tree to see how the fruit was doing.
You had to get to the fruit before the critters or another person got there or the fruit would be gone.
It was an annual game we all played and looked forward to.

They sell Pawpaw trees but I think it is too hot in this part of Texas for them to do well though I think I have seen them in an area west of here, (no I wont tell where). LOL

The flowers have little smell and one of the pollinators is the common blow fly so some gardeners put out rotten meat around the tree to increase fruit production.

They are an under story tree that does well in a shady yard and it would do anybody well to grow one or two if they live in the right climate for them.

I’ve seen them grow in poor soil right out of a rock pile.
http://www.crfg.org/pubs/ff/pawpaw.html


Worth

[mresseguie]

Pawpaw
Asimina triloba Grow this hardy, native American fruit and bring a taste of the tropics to your table. A relative of Cherimoya and several other tropical fruiting plants, Pawpaw is uniquely hardy to at least minus 20°F. Pawpaw fruit combines delectable, fruity, banana-like flavor with creamy, custard-like flesh. Nutritious as well as delicious, the greenish yellow, 3"- 6" long fruit is unusually high in protein and is a good source of vitamins and minerals. A slow growing, small tree, Pawpaw is naturally disease and pest resistant and features long, tropical-looking foliage that turns a striking bright yellow in the fall. Pawpaw was a significant part of the Native American diet, provided important sustenance for the Lewis and Clark Expedition, and, with our superior large-fruited varieties, is enjoying new popularity. We're pleased to be able to offer several rare and valuable varieties that can produce tasty and delicious fruit weighing 1/2 lb. or more.

http://www.onegreenworld.com//index.php?cPath=1_43

[amideutch]

mresseguie, nice to see you posting again, hope your family is well. I've got some pawpaw seeds I've been meaning to sprout. Maybe I'll throw them in the refrigerator for awhile and see if I can grow some seedlings. Ami

[Patapsco Mike]

Here in Maryland, paw paw trees are very common in the woods- but no one seems to eat them. I ate a few in the woods growing up, but myself and most of the kids I spent time in the woods with weren't crazy about them. They taste OK, but only when perfectly ripe. The flesh is soft, and there isn't a whole lot of it on each fruit (despite the fact that this is North America's largest native fruit). The skin can be tough and a bit bitter.

My mother in law is from South America, and is crazy about them. She planted two of the domesticated paw paw cultivars in her yard. She has to fight the squirrels for each one as it ripens. A lot of work for a few bites of fruit each year IMO, but she likes them.

They are an attractive tree, and do well in the shade.

[mresseguie]

Hiya, ami.

I just didn't feel compelled to comment on many things this winter. Last year was only a so so year for tomatoes. I relinquished my community garden plot (400 sq ft) because it was too much of a time/resource hog. I mourn the loss of space and its <now> excellent soil, but, oh, the time I'll have for other things!

Family is fine. Good luck with the paw paw seedlings. Do expect to wait several years before seeing fruit production--typically 3 yrs. for a bare root transplant. You'll need at least two varieties for cross pollination.

[Tormato]

Worth,

Thanks for the links, and the story. I don't think anything absurd can come out of the Ozarks.


Amideutch,

Researching about the seeds, it doesn't look like they can be let to dry out. They also seem to need 90-120 days of stratification.


Mresseguie,

Nice to see you back. Time to report back on the kholrabi.

The Supershmelz was great. It grew to about 6 lbs in a globe shape. Crisp, juicy, not woody.

The Granlibakken was disappointing. It grew to about 2 1/2 lbs. The shape was like a bowling pin. The top 1/3 was OK, but the bottom 2/3... the best way I could describe it was that it had the texture of neoprene.

Tormato

[mresseguie]

"The Supershmelz was great. It grew to about 6 lbs in a globe shape. Crisp, juicy, not woody.

The Granlibakken was disappointing. It grew to about 2 1/2 lbs. The shape was like a bowling pin. The top 1/3 was OK, but the bottom 2/3... the best way I could describe it was that it had the texture of neoprene. "

Neoprene?!?! I'll pass on it then.....yuck.

Good to hear about the Supershmelz. I bought a packet last month, and I'm just sowing seeds in a flat today! I visited a garden in Eugene, OR yesterday where Supershmelz over-wintered uncovered. They looked good!

My Gigante was a good choice, but I let some of them go too long before harvesting. They did get very woody, but it was my own fault. They held up to aphids very well.

I'm planting more greens and fewer tomatoes this year. I know.....it's blasphemy, but my family better appreciates lots of greens.

Ewww. I can't get the idea of eating neoprene out of my head. <shudder>

Michael

[Worth1]

Neither one of those is the American PAW PAW and I don't think you need a pollinator for ours, not for sure.

Here is a good link.
A real good link look at all of the photos.
Makes my mouth water.
http://www.pawpaw.kysu.edu/

Worth

[gladgrower]

Hello from Kentucky!
This is my first post at the "ville", and yet it's not about our beloved 'maters! I live where the PawPaw grows, and have about 6 growing that i started from good seed about 5 years ago. They are lovely tropical-looking trees, and i am looking forward to my first wildly tropical flowers on them this year - any first fruits will be a bonus, as i already love my young trees, nurtured so carefully for so long. BTW, our farm has a great abundance of deer and other wildlife, and they never touch the PawPaw trees here....but watch out for some sort of caterpillar that takes the leaves away just when one isn't looking! If anyone wants to know a great way to start the seed - let me know, and i will post method ( kind of long post!). As they have a VERY long taproot, even before the leaves show - they are not happy being transplanted as most things are.
Best regards,
Glad

[amideutch]

gladgrower said,If anyone wants to know a great way to start the seed - let me know, and i will post method ( kind of long post!). Post away as I would be interested. Ami