Planting Pawpaw Seeds

How to Select, Store, and Plant American Pawpaw Tree Seeds (Asimina Triloba)

Page Contents

• Introduction

• Climate and Soil Requirements

• Orchard Strategies

• Selecting Pawpaw Seeds and Trees

• Fruit Bearing

• Pawpaw Flavor

• Tree Appearance

• Seed Planting Instructions

• Seed Storage

• Grafting

• Wildlife Information

Introduction

This web-page is a guide for selecting and planting pawpaw trees from seeds according to your cultivation purposes.  It will help you determine if they're suitable for your climate, where to plant them, how to care for them, and what you should expect from them as they grow up.

Climate & Soil Requirements

Growing zones: 5-8.  "Indian banana" pawpaw likes hot humid summers with high temperatures above 80 degrees F  and cold winters and they like fertile, loose, moist soil.   They like the continental climate of the eastern and mid-western USA where daily temperatures typically go below freezing in the winter.   800 hours of near freezing to sub-freezing winter temperatures are required for bloom set.  The map shows the native range of pawpaw trees in America: 

Pawpaw trees are considered "wetland" but will do better if they are elevated above "frost pockets" that trap cold air.  Pawpaw trees  are somewhat drought tolerant once they are large, but avoid planting in areas with low annual rainfall (less than 30 inch per year) unless the tree can be watered on a regular basis or the water table can be reached by the taproot.    

Trees bloom in very early Spring and a heavy frost can damage the fruit crop.  

For the best fruit-bearing results they need a lot of sun.  Seedlings, on the other hand, need to be shielded from direct sun until they are more than 1 foot tall. 

Avoid planting pawpaw trees in windy locations because the large tropical leaves will be damaged.  Also late-afternoon sun can burn the trunks.

Orchard Strategies

Site location is one of the most important factor to success.  In the wild you'll typically find pawpaw trees around wetland areas and on sloping ravines. Water is critical. Pawpaw trees evolved from rain forest conditions and the large tropical leaves depend on high humidity and plenty of moisture in the ground. 

Seedlings need shade until they get a couple of feet tall. Their root system is sparse. In the wild, pawpaws are under-story trees that grow up where they can reach more sunlight.  I've found a good strategy is to partially clear the area you're going to plant, leaving some trees in the 15 to 20 foot range to provide shade. Then after the pawpaw trees get big enough you can clear out the small shade trees without crushing your saplings.

Selecting Pawpaw Seeds and Trees

Seedlings from pawpaw trees vary considerably from the parent trees.  From the same batch of seeds some of the seedlings will produce good fruit and some will produce inferior fruit. 

• Seedlings will show genetic variation compared to the parent trees.

• Scions for clonal propagation are genetically identical to the parent tree.

Grafted trees are genetically identical  clones of the parent tree using scions (twig and bud material) from the parent tree grafted onto the rootstock from another pawpaw seedling.

Fruit Bearing

Pawpaw trees in Kentucky typically bear fruit in August and September.

It usually takes 6 years or longer for a seedling to bear fruit and this is a long time to wait but you get more trees for the money compared to grafting.  Grafted trees produce consistent results at a higher cost.  They can bear fruit in 5 years.

Pawpaw Flavor

Pawpaw fruit has a unique tropical flavor that's like a banana with a hint of citrus.  The texture can range from a pudding-like consistency to buttery smooth like an avocado. 

Pawpaw fruit comes in two flavor groups.  Fruits with a cream-colored yellow flesh typically have a sweet and mild bannana-like tropical flavor.  Fruits with an orange flesh typically have a rich melon-like tropical flavor.

Tree Appearance

Pawpaws can make a good landscaping tree with few pest problems.  Their large tropical-looking leaves turn bright yellow in the Fall.  

Seed Planting  Instructions

Seeds need at least 1000 hours below 40 degrees F before they will sprout.   Do not freeze seeds because this will damage them.  Keep them refrigerated (in a refrigerator) through at least January or all the way through Spring.   Also, you can plant them in the cold season and allow them to continue dormancy in the soil until Spring.

Plant seeds about 1-2 inch (3-5 cm) deep in fertile, moist soil with good drainage.  Pearlite and vermiculite can be added to the soil to increase moisture retention and reduce compaction especially in areas where the ground is hard.  Heavy wind can damage leaves.  Seedlings need reduced sunlight until they are more than a foot tall.   They can tolerate heavy shade but will produce much more fruit in full sun. 

Note: Seeds sprout best at around 78F.  It can take several weeks (typically 4-8) for a root to emerge.  Do not remove seed cover from plant.  The seedling needs it for food. 

Seed Storage

Seeds should be cleaned and stored in moist peat moss.  Refrigerate between 40F (6C) and 32F (0C) until they are planted.  

For the best germination results:

• Keep seeds refrigerated between 40F (6C) and 32F (0C) until they are planted.

• Do not freeze seeds.

• Pawpaw seeds need more than 90 days at refrigerated temperatures in order to germinate.

• Do not allow seeds to dry out.

• Do not allow mold to grow on seeds.

Grafting

Grafting scions (bud wood) can be grafted to seedling root-stock or to pawpaw tree root-suckers that are pencil diameter or larger.  

Wildlife Information

Deer and other wildlife are attracted to the aroma of pawpaw fruit.  Fruit bearing pawpaw trees make excellent bait and serve as a food-source for many kinds of wildlife in the forest. 

Pawpaw trees attract the beautiful zebra swallowtail butterfly as the larval host for their caterpillar eggs.  The hatchlings munch on some of the leaves, but they do not harm the fruit in any way.  An energetic butterfly emerges as a colorful addition for the flower garden.