This small native tree can produce large, sweet fruit in your backyard.
Bob Stefko
The pawpaw (Asimina triloba) is a small tree native to the eastern United States.
Here’s what you gotta know to grow a pawpaw tree in your yard.
Credit:Bob Stefko
How and When to Plant Pawpaws
The best time to plant a pawpaw tree is in spring.
Avoid eating the skin or seeds of the fruit due tothe presence of annonacin, which is toxic.
Some shade can be helpful to younger trees while they become established.
Anypruning should be done in late winter to early spring, just before growth resumes.
Trimming will lower fruit production the following year.
Pests and Problems
Pawpaws are hardy once established, but cansuccumb to powdery mildew.
Treatments with organic pesticides such asneem oilor copper fungicides can help keep this disease under control.
Providing ample airflow around the tree can help to reduce infections, too.
How to Propagate Pawpaws
Pawpaws can be reliably propagated by grafting and sowing seeds.
However, seedlings and young trees can be difficult to establish.
Purchasing larger trees when available will help to ensure healthy and vigorous trees.
), and swampmilkweed(Asclepias incarnata).
Interestingly, pawpaws are not typically pollinated by bees, but rather by beetles.
Pawpaws are very tasty, but unfortunately fruiting is somewhat irregular, making orchard production unreliable.
Furthermore, pawpaws can be difficult to process and ship.
