Because of its short harvest season and shelf life, North America's largest native fruit is difficult to distribute and remains largely unfamiliar to most Americans. Researchers want to make it more accessible
On the outside, a pawpaw looks like a green mango. But inside, you’ll find golden, custard-like flesh cradling glossy, dark seeds. It tastes like a banana crossed with pineapple and mango, with notes of vanilla, and some say, cantaloupe. Its tropical flavors seem at odds with its native soil: the temperate forests ofPawpaw trees started from seed take five to eight years to bear fruit, which forms in clusters of two to nine.Please be respectful of copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited.
Believe it or not, the delicious pawpaw is as American as apple pie and baseball. Indigenous communities have been cultivating it long before its first written documentation, as early as 1541. In 1916,pawpaw crops were most likely to succeed ahead of other American favorites, including blueberries and cranberries. But somewhere along the way, the pawpaw disappeared from the American consciousness.
The problem, experts say, is that both the fruit’s picking season and shelf life are unfortunately short. Pawpaw trees bear fruit for only about six weeks in late summer, the fruit bruises easily and, after picking, only lasts a few days—about a week, refrigerated—presenting significant commercial challenges.Photograph by Jonathan Palmer, Kentucky State UniversityThe good news is that the continent’s largest edible fruit hasn’t disappeared from the American landscape.
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