‘Still life with Pawpaws’ by Edward Edmondson, Jr. 1870-1875 Dayton Art Institute
Related to the tropical Sugar Apple, Atemoya, Custard Apple and Cherimoya, the Pawpaw Asimina triloba is the largest edible fruit indigenous to the USA. The flavor is banana plus mango. It grows in the eastern states centered around Kentucky to Virginia, northern Georgia to Lousiana, to eastern Kansas, southern Michigan and Pennsylvania. They need more chill hours than occur in central Florida, but … there are other Asimina that do fruit here. One is Asimina obovata or Scrub Pawpaw, a small tree. Another is Asimina reticulata or Flatbush Pawpaw, a small shrub. There’s also A. angustifolia, A. incana, A. longifolia, A. parviflora, A. pygmaea, and A. tetramera if you can find them.
