I just introduced a couple friends to this wonderful native tree (via some fruit); like many, they couldn't believe that it grew wild in Indiana. The paw paw is not difficult to spot. It has simple leaves nearly a foot long, with smooth edges ("entire margins," having no teeth). Like me, you might first confuse it at some distance with a hickory, which has compound leaves. The Paw paw is an understory tree than doesn't seem to grow much more than 30 feet tall. Whenever you see a paw paw, look around you - there are almost certainly several more plants, since they reproduce by root suckering more-so than seed production.
The paw paw feels a little out of place this far north. It produces the largest edible fruit indigenous to the U.S. and both the fruit and leaves seem "tropical." The soft fruit tastes something like a banana-mango custard. Yum! Wait to pick until they are feeling a little soft on the outside. If you have to pull very hard to get them off the tree, it's too early. If you do catch some unripe fruit, try leaving them at room temp for a few days. They might yellow a little bit upon maturation, but all the fruits I've found this year have been fully ripe and still very green looking. You should be able to peel off the skin with your bare hands, which can be discarded.
I have purchased young seedlings on eBay and both of them put out leaves the first year. If you, dear reader, are interested in planting some trees of your own, I have been savings dozens of paw paw seeds from this years crop. I have read here (Kentucky State U. Planting Guide) that are somewhat tricky to germinate, but it hurts nothing to try. Please e-mail me if you'd like some seeds! However, this won't bear fruit for several years, nor will it likely be prodigious. But with this pleasant native oddity, the fruits are icing on the cake; you can forage for more paw paw patches in the meantime, carefully making notes for future harvests.
Of course the most important reason to forage paw paws is that it's yet another excuse to get out in the woods! I usually prefer the much higher chance of being "fruitful" with my paw paw "hunt" than the hours and hours I spent last fall waiting for venison. There are nearly 5,000 acres of woods where I work. From what I can tell nearly nobody even knows about them. That must be why I've hauled out several dozen fruits already!
But don't delay. It's a limited-time offer than won't return 'til our next lap around the star!
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