Asimina triloba
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Common Pawpaw, Dog-banana, Indian-banana
Annonaceae
Plant Specifics
Form: | Tree | |
Size: | 15-20 ft, may be clonal. | |
Life Span: | Long-lived perennial | |
Flower Color: | Red | |
Fruit Color: | Green | |
Phenology: | Deciduous | |
Noted for: | Interesting foliage |
Landscaping
Recommended Uses: | Small specimen tree. Also works well as a component of floodplain forests. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Propagation: | Can be grown from seed. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Availability: | Native nurseries, Seed | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Light: | Full Sun, Part Shade | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Moisture Tolerance: |
always floodedextremely dry |
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(Stays Wet ----- to ----- Not wet but not extremely dry) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Moisture Tolerance: | Stays Wet ----- to ----- Not wet but not extremely dry | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Salt Water Flooding Tolerance: | Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Salt Spray/ Salty Soil Tolerance: | Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Soil or other substrate: | Loam, Sand | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Soil pH: | Acidic to neutral |
Ecology
Wildlife: |
Small mammals and birds harvest the fruit. | |
Insects: | Pollinated by flies and beetles | |
Native Habitats: | River floodplains, predominantly to the north of Florida. In most of Florida, Asimina parviflora would be more appropriate yet very similar in appearance. |
Distribution and Planting Zones
Natural Range in Florida
USDA Zones
Suitable to grow in:
8A 8B 9A
USDA zones are based on minimum winter temperatures
Comments
Ethnobotany: | Fruits edible. According to Epps (2019), the fruit of Asimina triloba is the largest edible fruit native to the U.S. and can weigh up to a pound although 5 to 7 ounces is more typical. They also suggest that with the possible exception of the black bear, the seeds are too large to be ingested by modern north American mammals. They conjecture that the primary spreader of the seeds was humans. | |
General Comments: | Flowers are dark maroon, not showy. |