I found a spot to plant my Kentucky Champion after a delay.
My gut tells me to plant the Pawpaw and angle it a few degrees to the right so that grafted part is growing straight up?
Or…I could try and t-bud another variety to the opposite side to “balance” it out if planted straight?
I have never T-budded before and I really dont want to mess with a Pawpaw since they take a few years to produce.
Thoughts please!
I would place another plant (seedling) 6 feet apart and when tall enough chip bud it with another variety. Pawpaw has a very soft wood and extremely wide cambium layer so it is very easy to do even for the beginners. Forget about t- budding pawpaw it doesn’t work as good as chip budding.
I think that tree will be fine whether planted like it is oriented in the picture, or with the trunk straight and the top angled. That tilt will just be aesthetic and the new growth will orient to the sun. In 10 years it will just be a little character in the trunk.
If you must have it straight, plant the trunk vertical, pound a steel T-post next to the tree, and tie the tree to it to train it.
