Papaw

papaw

 or pawpaw

Deciduous tree or shrub (Asimina triloba) of the custard apple family, native to the eastern and midwestern U.S. It can grow to 40 ft (12 m) tall and has pointed, broadly oblong, drooping leaves up to 12 in. (30 cm) long. The purple flowers bloom with a foul odour before the leaves emerge in spring. The edible fruit looks like a stubby banana; its skin turns black as it ripens. Handling papaw fruits produces a skin reaction in allergic individuals. The name is also sometimes applied to the papaya.

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Papaw 

(Asimina), a genus of deciduous and evergreen plants of the family Annonaceae. Shrubs, less commonly low trees with succulent edible fruits. Eight species are known in North America. A. triloba is cultivated in the USSR (in the Caucasus and Crimea) as an ornamental. It is a low (to 12 m) deciduous tree with large brownish-red flowers. It begins to bear fruit in the third or fourth year of life. The fruit is aggregate, juicy, and edible, with a cloying aromatic pulp. The seeds and leaves are used in medicine.

REFERENCES

Derev’ia i kustarniki SSSR , vol. 3. Moscow-Leningrad, 1954.
Shimanyuk, A. P. Dendrologiia. Moscow, 1967.