Description
Asimina triloba
Pawpaw, Poor Man’s Banana – a native deciduous edible fruit tree, the fruit looks like mango’s and tastings like a combination of vanilla custard, banana, mango, avocado, and pineapple. Host plant to the Zebra swallowtail butterfly. Young pawpaw plant is very sensitive to full sunlight and requires filtered sun for the first year or two. Once established, pawpaw prefers full sun. The large dangling leaves dislike strong winds, two trees are needed for pollination. Soil requires, fertile moist, but well drained and slightly acid. Two trees are needed for cross-pollination if you’re wanting fruit.
Yearly Foliage: Deciduous
Hardiness Zone: 5-9
Light: Full sun to partial shade
Mature Growth: 10-25 feet high
Soil: fertile, moist, slightly acid, well drained
Blooms: summer
Wildlife: Nectar-insects, Nectar-butterflies, Nectar-bees
Larval Host Plant for: Zebra swallowtail butterfly
