Eetbare tuin-edible garden Asimina triloba - Paw paw tree

• Article number: ASITRI02*

Asimina triloba or Paw paw tree is a three-lobed plant and a separate fruit-bearing plant.
Also the only one in the Annonaceae family that is very hardy.
It is a winter deciduous tree or shrub.
The Paw Paw grows very slowly and grows an average of 20 cm per year. 
The maximum height is around 6/8 meters, but the plant can be pruned at any desired height in winter. 
The Indian name Assimin became a Latin translation Asimina.

This plant was previously used by the Indians for its fruits. This plant is found in North-East America and a part of Canada where the summers are even shorter than in our region.
The fruits of this plant ripen very well here.
The plant can already give fruit on the young wood after the 5th year, but as a rule from the 6th to 7th year you can expect the first fruits. The plants are then usually about 125/150 cm in size. 
Flowering time from end of aptil until May and lasts 3 weeks. Flowers are dark brown and about 4 cm and bloom on bare wood.  
From the beginning of September until mid-October the fruits ripen.

The Asimina triloba seedlings we sell are fairly self-pollinating if at least two plants are used for cross-pollination.
We have seedlings of the Prima 12/16 and the Sunflower. 
These are seeds from cross-pollination and therefore not exactly clear which species, so we call them the regular (seedling) Asimina triloba. 
Grafted plants of the Sunflower and the Prima 12/16 are also available. You only need to have one of these plants. These are also fine to plant between a group of seedlings as cross-pollinators.   
In our example garden we have a specimen from 1999 all alone of which we had reasonable fruits every year.
However, since 2012 we have planted some more specimens and the yield is considerably higher. 
As far as pollination of the flowers is concerned, we don't do anything, this is mainly done by insects coming at the sweet nectar. 
What works even better is to use a small brush to pollinate the flowers between the different plants. 

The fruits look a bit like a potato or thick sausage.
They do not look like potatoes, but that is one of the reasons why this plant is so special in your garden.
The fruits are deliciously sweet, they taste a bit like a mixture of banana / mango / pineapple and are 7 to 15 cm long and can weigh between 200 and 450 grams.
These fruits are also very healthy, similar to that of the kaki tree.
Rich in vitamins C and A, they are real protein bombs. The fruit can be kept in a refrigerator for 3 to 4 weeks.

The type of soil does not make much difference to the Paw Paw, but something acidic is a prerequisite for good growth and fruiting.
If the soil is not acidic, you can sprinkle a layer of peat over the roots of the plant every year. The same idea that is done annually for Rhododendron and Camellia for example.
Winter hardiness zone 5b (-26ºC).