Note - these can persist overwinter to the next year. These are from this year.
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First one of the year for me. It had something a little weird going on with the brown spots but was mostly pretty good.
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Wow!! That variety is quite early for our area.
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The only one I have left has been in the 'fridge for 18 days. Itâs still in good condition, no black or brown spots. Things early in KY this year.
I ate a wild one that was white fleshed but lots of seeds on Berea college property. Nice mild taste.
Lack of pollinators kept us from having a good crop of this fruit this yearâŚearly bloom and temps never hit 60 the whole bloom I donât think.
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Iâve got a few grafts of Summer Delight growing out. Iâll be curious to see how early they ripens in our neck of the woods.
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I look for early ripening, good tasting, no bitter after taste varieties. Am I asking too much? 
I grafted Allegheny this year.
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I will have a few fruit of Mango, Shenandoah, Sunflower and Wabash pawpaws this yearâŚ.if wildlife does not get to them before me.
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Also wanting fast growing and a very low seed to flesh ratio,might have been asking for too much.
From what Iâve read though,Allegheny might fit your wants,really well.
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Bought some presumably wild fruit from foraged.com and liked the taste, though the fruit were small and somewhat seedy. I think Iâll probably try to pick up some Peterson cultivars for planting in prime areas, but would like to plant a few of these seeds in various places in the hope of bringing them back.
Whatâs the best guide to how to get pawpaw seeds to sprout and transplant without being too precious about it (i.e. these are not things Iâm investing orchard energy in, just it would be nice to plant a few seedlings somewhere if they sprout).
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Keep seeds from drying out at all times prior to planting. Remove all pawpaw flesh from seeds. Soak in 1:10 bleach solution or other sterilization method to limit mold growth on the seeds (just a few minutes is fine). Place in a damp paper towel/damp peat moss/sphagnum moss/coconut coir etc in a sealed bag or container and keep in the fridge for 90+ days (NOT the freezer).Either take out and warm up until you see a root coming out, or plant ~1-2 inches deep and give bottom heat until you see growth, usually 2+ weeks (keep soil moist, manage to remove fungus gnats).
If at any time you notice mold growing, wash the seeds off asap and keep going! If you catch it soon enough theyâll be fine.
Planting seeds where you want trees and grafting improved selections years later after figuring out what types you prefer is the preferred method for best fruit quality unless you want to play the genetic lottery. Some wild fruit tastes gross, itâs luck of the draw. Grafting pawpaw is easy if you do it with the right tools/techniques at the right time.
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I grew my seeds out in real tall pots. they make a lot of roots before they even elbow the seed itself up out of the soil, think months. I had one that sprouted up 5 months after it was put in dirt. youâve got to keep them damp the whole time too.
worth it, one is a foot tall from seed last year. a named variety though, all the seeds I sprouted were
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The seeds are not named varieties, just the offspring of named varieties (seedlings). I was referring to time to germination for a few weeks.
Pawpaws are not true to seed like some citrus fruits can be.
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Or you could toss a big handfull of rotten pawpaws into a thicket of briars or weeds right nowâŚand 10 to 22 months from now youâll find some little trees. (Been there, done that.)
Of course, if you only have a very few seeds and the germination rate is importantâŚRyan gave good advice.
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I plan to save some seeds from named varieties (Pawpaw Fest in PA tomorrow), stratify them until January, and then pot them up. Hopefully theyâll pop out to say hi and I can let them grow in the window or under a grow light and move them outside once itâs warmer. Give them a little extra grow time their first year.
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Thanks @disc4tw. I plan to buy some grafted saplings next year. For these, I would just like to plant in some places not at my parents house, and can always graft stuff to them later as you say.
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For improved varieties, Iâm thinking of a KYC champion and a Peterson Rap. Iâm curious about a lot of the more unusual flavors, but unsure about if they will grow up in 5b, at least to the point of producing fruit.
Seems like it would be fun to grow some of the freestone varieties but seems like theyâre better suited to pulping than eating directly?
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The wild pawpaw I tasted was nice but I found the flavor very rich and strong and over sweet. Feel like I couldnât eat more than a few spoonfuls straight up. Would love to find something more tart/acidic and/or lighter/refreshing if I can. My favorite fruits are all on the tarter end of the spectrum (McIntosh apples for example) or really light and clean like watermelon vs more cloying melons.
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KY Champion is supposed to be early but not a heavy producer. If early is your objective, Halvin, Summer Delight, Allegheny, or Mariaâs Joy should also be considered. Good luck!
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Thanks Ryan. Your resources and posts are all so great.
I read mixed things about the necessity of going early at zone 5b. some people say you have to do it for the fruit to ripen, but @Buzzferver says âthey all grow wellâ so maybe thatâs urban legend.
Mostly I want robust trees that produce good tasting fruit! Not doing anything commercial.
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