Plant Characteristics:
- Tree: small tree or shrub usually under 25 ft, can grow to 40 ft; wide topped, with sparse, straight branches often forming thickets
- Bark: smooth, thin, brown, splotched with wart like pores; often with pale grey patches
- Twigs: pale brown and semi-thick; young stems have reddish hairs
- Buds: terminal buds large or elongated; no scales reddish-brown and feather-like; flower buds round and brown, leaf buds oblong
- Leaves: alternate; simple; large, 5-11 in long and 2-3 in wide; entire margins, tips come to a point; green pepper/fresh asphalt odor when crushed
- Fall Foliage: yellow
- Flowers: opening greenish-yellow becoming purple-brown, broad bell shaped, 1-2 in across; 3 sepals and 6 petals; appear with or slightly before leaves and have an odor of fermenting grape
- Fruit type: fleshy, edible, 2.5 -4 in long, resembling a short, fat, irregular banana; turns yellowish and then brown as they ripen; seeds are brown, smooth, and flattened.
Additional Details:
- This tree has a tropical appearance with large drooping leaves.
- They tolerate shade and should be considered an understory species and deer prefer not to browse this tree.
- The inner bark was valued historically in production of cord and fishing nets.
- Early settlers made jelly that is still sold in some Southern towns.
- The fruits generally fall to the ground before they are ripe and therefore must be ripened at home
- Pawpaw fruit is eaten by birds, squirrels, raccoons and opossums, and is the only food source for the Zebra Swallowtail Butterfly.
- There is no use for the wood, but the inner bark was woven into fiber cloth by the Louisiana Indians and pioneers used it for stringing fish.
- An alkaloid known as asiminine is within the seeds and can cause sensitive people to have dermatitis after handling the fruit.
The only member of the Custard-Apple Family, also known as Wild Banana, Custard Apple and Fetidshrub.
References:
Brown, R. and M. Brown. 1972. Woody Plants of Maryland. Port City Press, Baltimore, MD.
Foster, S. and J. Duke. 1990. A field guide to medicinal plants of Eastern and Central North America. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, MA.
Grimm, W. C. and J. Kartesz. 2002. The Illustrated Book of Trees. Stackpole Books. Mechanicsburg, PA.
Harris, J. and M. Woolf Harris. 1994. Plant Identification Terminology: An illustrated Glossary. Spring Lake Publishing, Spring Lake, UT.
Peterson, L. 1977. A field guide to edible wild plants of Eastern and Central North America. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, MA.
Virginia Department of Forestry. 2022. Common Native Trees of Virginia – Tree Identification Guide.
The Wildflower Center Staff. 2023. Plant Database. Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. The University of Texas at Austin.