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  • From: Jay Cutts <orders@cuttsreviews.com>
  • To: nafex mailing list at ibiblio <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [nafex] Pawpaw survival
  • Date: Thu, 11 Jul 2013 10:09:34 -0600

Sherwin,

I have a friend who has a pawpaw that is well established here, so yes, I think it can be done. Mine are in very sandy soil and get plenty of water. Of course we have plenty of hot days, so we've got the heat covered.

I'm starting to think that they need more protection for longer, such as until they are three feet high, as someone suggested. That might take five or six years around here. Protection would avoid the wind problems, as well as excess sun, and might reduce the exposure to insect damage. Another thing I might try is to grow them in a deep pot for several years, as was discussed on the list recently. That way I can keep them in a more protected location. The trick is that potted plants can easily dry out too much in the winter. (We get very little winter moisture here.)

There may be a day when I give up on growing pawpaws but it's not yet!!!

Regards,

Jay

Jay Cutts
Director, Cutts Graduate Reviews
Lead Author, Barron's MCAT Prep Book
Lead Author, Barron's LSAT Prep Book (2013)
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On 7/10/2013 9:51 PM, sherwin wrote:
On 7/10/2013 9:25 PM, Matt Demmon wrote:
I bet it is either:

-soil is too alkaline/acidic/rocky
-elevation
-relative humidity is too low
-not enough moisture
-soil isn't deep enough
-too cold, at night, or in the winter, or temperature shifts too greatly
-not hot enough for a long enough season
-sunlight is too intense
-too much wind

Or a combination of them. It's really not the climate or even bioregion
they are adapted to. Even here in Michigan, in my experience, they need
deep, rich, preferably moist soil, lots of heat, not too much cold, not too
much temperature fluctuation, too be kept free from weeds, and in a
generally protected site. They seem to do the absolute best either along
rivers, near the great lakes, or in urban heat islands, all of which
moderate temperatures.

My advice is give up and grow something that does better in your climate! I
bet you can grow some killer plums there, while here they get brown rot,
black knot, infinite bugs, and it's so darn cloudy all the time they never
get all that sweet anyways.

-matt
z5 se MI


Matt,

You may be giving the right advice about Pawpaws being difficult
to grow, but I think it possibly can be done even in New Mexico
with the
proper techniques. I know of several plants from the west coast that
are not recommended for our zone 5 here, but people manage to grow
some of them. Maybe, it is a micro climate issue.

As far as cold, my Pawpaws have survived several Chicago winters,
so I don't think the cold is killing them. The season here in the
Midwest is not known for long summers, so I doubt lack of heat
is an issue.

Yes, the desert sun can be scorching, but that should not bother
this tropical plant once it has come out of it's initial early years
of required shade.

Water can be an issue, but with proper irrigation, that can be
overcome.

I think there is not much technical knowledge or studies about
Pawpaws.
We still have a lot to learn about these plants. Sure, it would
be a lot
or work to grow these in his location, but if he really wants to
grow
Pawpaws, I say under the right conditions and with enough effort,
it may work.

Sherwin Dubren
Morton Grove, IL
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