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Pawpaw: From Forgotten Woodlands to Center Stage
Could you imagine a tropical-esque fruit tree native to 26 states falling into obscurity? A fruit with flavor profiles ranging from melon to citrus to custard and a texture akin to mango. Sounds unbelievable but pawpaws nearly suffered this fate and are now enjoying a resurgence in popularity, and for good reason! Once as common and well know as apples are today, pawpaws were nearly forgotten until recently. A massive cultural shift away from land based living compounded upon development and habitat destruction reduced pawpaws’ place in the lives of the common folk. We stopped going to the woods for food and medicine, began participating in a more globalized economy…
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Introducing Air Potatoes
Given our shifting climate, increased drought and flooding events and general instability, I think it is wise to start allying with a myriad of crops- especially those that are notably vigorous. I love potatoes and sweet potatoes a lot, and they do really well for us here, AND diversity is key in creating resilient systems. After a few seasons growing D. batatas and one growing D. bulbifera, I feel encouraged to continue experimenting with these plants. The batatas especially, given its cold hardy nature, would do well in and amongst shrubs and trees. In this instance, it has even taken a liking to one of our common food forest nitrogen…
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Growing Pawpaws from Seed
When growing out from seed, fruit quality can be expected to be similar to that of the fruit from which it came. A Susquehanna fruit will yield seeds with a high quality fruit, although not identical to its parent. Choosing seeds from selected cultivars means you can grow high quality fruit without the fuss of grafting and increase genetic diversity. For pollination purposes it can be helpful to have a wider variety of individuals too.
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Seeding the Permaculture Nursery at Mountain Jewel
This year at Mountain Jewel we have been busy planting seeds for the future. In air prune beds we have planted a variety of hybrid Chestnuts (Chinese x Japanese x American x European), Select Chinese Chestnuts, Persimmons, Select Pawpaws and English Lime. All of these plants thrive in our bioregion. These trees will be available fall 2020 to purchase through our website. We offer shipping and local pickup.
