Paw paw (Asimina triloba)
Paw paw (Asimina triloba)
Not the tropical paw paw (Carica papaya), but a fully hardy paw paw from North America!
Although the paw paw
is larger in the States, it rarely gets to be more than about 5 m in our more maritime climate, and that will take time as it grows only slowly.
Giving a touch of the exotic though, it is deciduous but with large glossy oval leaves that turn bright yellow in the autumn. Said to be self-fertile, growing two if you have the room however will aid pollination, it will grow in any soil that is not too dry but needs to be in full sun for good fruit production, though young plants benefit from some shade in the middle of the day till they grow up a bit.
The large purplish flowers are produced in mid to late spring, and it then produces the largest indigenous fruit in the US, getting to be anything between 5-15 cm long, ready through the early autumn when it falls, and is stored until fully ripe. By then it's sweet with a soft juicy pulp and used in many ways in it's native country.
The plants we sell are small seedlings, as the young plant produces a deep tap root before putting on much top growth, it is a good idea to plant out as young as possible!