Pawpaw Fruit Tidbits
Here are some wonderfully interesting facts & info about the unique, elusive and yet native fruit…the pawpaw fruit, or asimina triloba!
There are at least documented 209 named varieties of pawpaws and will have a list of the varieties and description (if available) at the Great Escape Farms boot at the pawpaw festival. These named pawpaws generally have desired qualities over wild pawpaws.
There are 48 named varieties of pawpaws that are extinct or “missing”.
Pawpaw seeds require stratification to break dormancy. Stratification of plants is the process of going through winter or cold weather for a period of time. Pawpaws require a minimum of 90-days of stratification. Great Escape Farms simulates stratification using moist seeds in a plastic bag in the refrigerator for 120-days.
Pawpaw seeds lose 50% viability if they dry out. If you want to grow a pawpaw tree from seed, NEVER let you seeds dry out.
Pappaws are native to the Unites States from North Florida to upstate New York and west to Nebraska. They are native to 26 states total.
Pawpaw fruits are the largest edible fruit indigenous to the United States. (not counting gourds, which are typically considered vegetables rather than fruit for culinary purposes, although in botany they are classified as fruit). Wikipedia
Harvest time is generally September – October, but some cultivars ripen earlier.
Have been in North America for millions of years based on fossil records.
Lewis and Clark survived starvation by eating paw paws
The flavor of pawpaw changes with the ripeness, kind of like a banana flavor changes as it ripens. At pawpaw tastings, our samplers sometimes say the flavor is similar to banana, mango, cocoa butter, pineapple, cantaloupe, or caramel.
Pawpaw size varies greatly and can be just a few ounces in the wild up to 1.5 pounds or more on named cultivars.
According to WebMD: The pawpaw is a good source of: Vitamin C, Vitamin A, Riboflavin, Niacin, Potassium, Calcium, Iron, Zinc, Magnesium, Phosphorous, Copper, and Manganese. Source: https://www.webmd.com/diet/health-benefits-pawpaw-fruit
Flowers are perfect but incompatible?? The pawpaw flowers are perfect in that they have both male and female parts. They are generally incompatible in that they cannot generally pollinate themselves, with a few varietal exceptions.
Pawpaw flowers are NOT pollinated by bees or butterflies. The flowers are FETID and therefore they are pollinated by flies and beetles. FETID in some plants use a putrid or stinky smell to attract flies and beetles. Pawpaw uses a fermenting smell and often attracts fruit flies.
Pawpaw Peduncle – This is the part of the tree that connects the pawpaw fruit to the branch. A peduncle can have multiple fruit hanging from it.
How many fruits can a single pawpaw flower produce? Up to 8 or more! That is right. A single pawpaw flower can produce many of these large fruits. Usually 8 is the max, but there have been rare instances of 9 or more fruit from one flower.