Yes small areas are where I’ve used it. My main concern with using mulch only is having issues with not drowning out the weeds but also causing harm to the trees I would plant for not having their roots being at a good zone for gas transfer. Anyway, I’d say let’s get back to the topic on hand. My Regulus grafts are showing life, very excited to regain this one for mass distribution and growing a few as landscaping trees along with some hybrid persimmons. I’ll likely graft a pollinator partner into each of these. Likely a Lehman variety for good seed genetics.
3 Likes
Petrichor 3
KSU Atwood
Jerry’s Big Girl
Halvin
Wabash
Petrichor 4
Others showing good growth and I’m assuming took: Tropical Treat, possibly NC-1. Losers appear to be: Marshmallow, and a few duplicate grafts from above. Please excuse my pawpaw patch… it’s in a wilder part of the property and has not been mulched or weeded in 2 years. The pawpaws are too mature to be bothered although I do rip out poison ivy when I find it - for me, not the trees.
6 Likes
Looking good! Man, makes me want to do some grafting. So exciting when they take (but heartbreaking when they don’t)
2 Likes
Really too close to the main trunk to try imo. Usually rootsuckers that pop up several feet away will work beter.
4 Likes
you can let them size up a bit then take a black plastic pot and cut out the bottom and place it over the suckers. Scrape about 1 inch both side near the bottom of the root suckers and fill the pot up with potting mix, this will scar up the area and promote root formation. You can check for roots in 3 months after the procedure.
Tony
6 Likes
Agree.
In the spirit of pawpaws 2024, my update:
Due to the insane heat for the last 6 weeks and drought conditions, my trees are struggling.
Benson has dropped half its fruit prematurely (not the same as June Drop) and probably won’t ripen any fruit. They’re about 20% normal size.
Leaves are burning and curling up.
Fruit is small.
Dodged cicada damage only to be hit with this weather.
This is when you kick yourself for procrastinating on a sweet irrigation setup.
However, I’m trying my best to water them and I think should avoid losing any trees outright. My benson tree (not the cultivar) has always had weird issues- it may bite it.
3 Likes
@tonyOmahaz5 has this worked for you specifically with pawpaw?
Generally I get the method but wouldn’t ordinarily think it’d work with the fussy pawpaw.
I tried this method about 8 years ago and the root sucker formed roots. I waited until the following spring around the end of March and cut the side of the pot straight down and loosen the potting mix and cut the root sucker about 1 inch below the root formation and planted it in shade and grafted it at the end of May.
Tony
5 Likes
Good to know, I have thought that rootsuckers may hold more capacity to produce roots from the stem vs just a branch or other types of cuttings.
1 Like
My Susquehanna that had lots of winter dieback is once again the most vigorous of my pawpaws this year, but I wonder if I should prune off most of these branches. They are all from above the graft union, but I feel like I should encourage a more standard shape rather than a bush, right?
In that situation I would select the most vigorous branch and train as the new leader.
However, with healthy young trees (grafted or seedlings) I’m in the camp of not pruning any branches until the tree is mature. Following this practice for me seems to make the trunk thicker and stronger and sets the tree up for long term success.
3 Likes
I was wondering if anyone here could recommend me a couple good early-season pawpaw varieties if there is ever such a thing. I live on Vancouver Island and I had two pawpaws die during last winter, ‘Mango’ and ‘Potomac’. I contacted the nursery from where I bought them from and they advised me to grow early season pawpaws, especially in my climate - we don’t get much summer rains at all, far different what I hear people experiences on the east coast.
Allegheny,VE-21,Kentucky Champion and Summer Delight.
5 Likes
Thanks Brady!
1 Like
We had record level heat and drought June and most of July. But starting last Thursday or so, we’ve turned into a rainforest with rain and downpours basically every day (raining now!)
One of my trees has apparently reacted strangely. It’s a Lehman’s Delight seedling in its 7th leaf, about the 3rd year to flower.
I went out last night and found about 15 largeish fruits littering the ground beneath this tree.
I’ve never seen anything like this in late July.
The fruits aren’t fragrant and are green but a little pale. The scar is dry.
I’ll see if they ripen on the counter. I think they will but may make me sick due to this strange early drop (I’m convinced immature fruit is the primary cause of nausea.)
(Some fruit were damaged from the fall so aren’t pictured)
6 Likes
Hey,
I just wanted to ask if someone here could ship pawpaw fruit to me in California this year. I sent an inquiry to @JustPeachy back at the end of May but there’s been no response and looks like he’s been inactive on the forum for a while now.
I’d like to try Chappell, Susquehanna, and Jerry’s Big Girl if possible. If there’s still room in the box I’m open to suggestions, so far I was thinking other Lehman varieties.
PM me please.
I went to see what the local park pawpaw trees had going on this year. Park 1:
Out of the dozens of blossoms I saw a couple months ago I only saw a single fruit on one of the three or four trees. Decent sized fruit though. I’m wondering if it just got terrible fruitset or animals/people picked all the others off?
Park 2 had a bunch of fruit on the trees, but they were either further behind or just smaller fruit:
6 Likes
Most of my ‘secret spots’ are already public knowledge for those willing to look in the right places. I have a few I don’t plan to share, but those I have shared seem to have the best quality fruit and easiest access anyways!
I’m hopeful we’ll be ahead of schedule and get some early fruit this year on the western side of the state.
1 Like