Quick Facts
Exposure: Full Sun
Height at Maturity: Under 25 Feet
Usage: Fruiting
Shipped As: Bare-root
Planting Zones: 5-9
Product Details
Our pawpaw seedlings are Asimina triloba, the native North American fruit tree whose custard-soft fruit tastes like a cross of banana, mango and melon. They ship bare-root at 6-12 inches and 12-18 inches, in packs of 25 and 100, for orchards, edible landscapes, woodland plantings and growers starting a niche fruit crop.
Pawpaw Seedlings Size, Zones and Sun
Don't expect a giant. Pawpaw tops out around 15 to 30 feet in a pyramid shape, about as wide as it is tall, and grows at a medium pace. It's hardy in zones 5 to 9. In the woods it lives in shade, but it fruits best in full sun, and it will take partial or deep shade if fruit isn't the goal. The soil it likes is moist, rich and well-drained, a little on the acid side (pH under 6).
Pawpaw Flowers and Fruit
Purplish-brown flowers open in spring before the leaves, and they smell bad to us and good to flies and beetles. They can't pollinate themselves, so you need two genetically different pawpaws nearby to set fruit. The fruit is a fleshy berry, 2.5 to 6 inches long, ripening from late summer into early fall. The flavor is custardy and sweet.
Pawpaw and the Zebra Swallowtail
Pawpaw is the host plant for zebra swallowtail caterpillars, which feed on the young leaves without hurting the tree much. Planting milkweed, redbud or blueberry nearby gives the adult butterflies nectar. Our pawpaw seedlings buying guide has more on putting them to work.
Where to Plant Pawpaw
Pawpaw is an understory tree in the wild, so it fits at the edge of woods, in a food forest or inside an orchard row. Plant at least two seedlings within reach of each other. Our how to grow a pawpaw tree walks through site and spacing.
Planting Pawpaw Seedlings
Pawpaws hate drying out. Keep the roots wet until planting and set the seedling at the depth it grew. Young plants appreciate some shade for their first season, and they need steady watering. Roots don't tolerate permanently waterlogged ground, but occasional wet spells are fine.
Buying Pawpaw Seedlings in Bulk
The 25 pack suits a small orchard or a trial block. The 100 pack is for growers building a planting or a nursery bed. At 10 by 10 feet spacing, 100 seedlings cover about 10,000 square feet. Pairing different pawpaw selections improves fruit set.
Good to Know About Pawpaw
Trees send up root suckers, which fill in over time. Wear gloves when picking, since some people get a rash from the fruit. Wildlife will compete with you for ripe fruit.
Pawpaw for Edible Landscapes
Pawpaw fits a food forest or a mixed native orchard. The large leaves, 6 to 12 inches long, turn yellow in fall, and the tree has a neat pyramid shape that looks good in the landscape. Once the roots are established, pawpaw needs very little from you. Planting a few near each other gives better fruit set and a steadier harvest as the trees mature.
Pawpaw Seedling Sizes, Packs and Shipping
Pawpaw seedlings ship bare-root in November, in 6-12 inch and 12-18 inch sizes and packs of 25 and 100. Volume pricing available. Browse more bare-root seedlings in our wholesale collection.