FOR THE LOVE OF PAWPAWS: A Mini Manual for Growing and Caring for Pawpaws - From Seed to Table

by Michael Judd

It is hard to eat more than one pawpaw at a go. The creamy rich pulp with tropical flavors ranging from mango and pineapple to banana combine like a satisfying dessert.

The pawpaw, a close relative of the tropical custard apple, grows throughout much of North America yet culturally and horticulturally we know very little about it.

This mini manual by edible landscape author Michael Judd jumps right into growing, caring for, harvesting, and using pawpaws – from seed to table. Judd demystifies fruit growing in direct, easy to follow steps that quickly brings confidence to the newbie grower while expanding the horizons of curious gardeners.

Historically most people have only experienced foraged pawpaw fruit, which can be a hit or miss game for a good experience. That is quickly changing as selected and bred cultivars are being grown and shared. Judd's pawpaw manual gets you started right away with the best selections and approaches.

Filled with straight forward how-to, colorful pictures and illustrations For the Love of Pawpaws brings to life easy and successful ways to enjoy the best pawpaws have to offer.

Chapters include:

•Where Can I Grow Pawpaws?
•Buying a Good Pawpaw Tree
•Growing Pawpaws from Seed & Grafting
•Landscaping Ideas
•Ecological Tree Care
•Harvest: Fruit Handling & Processing
•What to Do with All this Fruit! Recipes
•Pawpaws & Permaculture

Discover the many reasons pawpaws are edible landscape and culinary all-stars!

‘For the Love of Pawpaws’ will take you on an adventure that culminates in one of life’s most rewarding experiences. A delicious opportunity to enjoy organic gardening and gourmet food at it best.

Genres: Nonfiction, Gardening

305 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 15, 2019

Reviews

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very fun and easy to read. I appreciate the explanations on pruning and permaculture in layman’s terms. I already have two pawpaws growing in my yard; this book will be invaluable for pruning recommendations, harvesting, fertilizing, and what to do with all that fruit (when the fruit starts coming).

[Bernard Lavallée · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the one! If you're looking for a practical guide on how to grow pawpaws, this one has everything you need, and more!

[Stephen Yoder · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got this book as an early birthday present. I'm fairly crazy about paw paws, although now I realize that I'm just not that hard-core after all. Now that I've read this intensely helpful book it is quite obvious that cultivars & grafted stocks of paw paws will be far more productive than wild strains. Oops. What I've planted in my backyard over the past couple of years are simply seeds that I've foraged from wild paw paws. Oh, well. There go my hopes of having an ad hoc top-notch paw paw orchard in the suburbs.
In all seriousness, this book is great. Michael Judd describes the entire set of activities around paw paw husbandry. Buying a known cultivar is one's best bet at having a quickly growing tree that will produce large, numerous fruits. One must prune. It is important to learn how to graft. Mulching & fertilizing are both very important for high-producing trees.
I'm not passing this book on because I've gained an important resource here. This Fall I'm making Paw Paw Fruit Fool, mark my words.

[Eric · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't give a lot of 5s. And this isn't War and Peace. But for a book about Paw Paws, I can't think of anything else I'd want. There is a lot of good advice on both Paw Paws themselves and adjacent topics. The narration is breezy, but concise and informative. I spent the whole time reading this book trying to visualize exactly where I might be able to fit a couple Paw Paw cultivars...

In fact, I liked the book enough that I went out and ordered his other book from the Ivy Bookshop, and already plan to trek out to Frederick this Fall to try to find a couple of healthy specimens for the yet-to-be-determined location in my yard. I assume I'll find a place!

(and I have yet to eat a Paw Paw, all wild thus far, that has been palatable...but the Zebra Swallowtail, that's what I'm after!)

[Colby · Rating 5 out of 5]

Got this book because I am going to be planting some pawpaws here in Utah, USA. Since, I am not in the pawpaw home-range and they are pretty rare(some trees here and there in people's front and backyards) I figure I needed all the help I could get. The book is thoughtfully well laid out and has given me enough information that I feel that I can succeed in planting my own little pawpaw patch(10 trees).

[Teja]

Do I want to go grow pawpaws in the middle of nowhere after reading this? It's possible.

[Pam Dawling · Rating 5 out of 5]

This wonderful new book is inspiring and appetizing, practical and beautiful. About 150 pages of glorious photos, technical details, mouthwatering recipes, and anything else you might need to start growing pawpaws or to make better use of wild pawpaws on neglected trees nearby. Here you can learn the reasons to plant named cultivars that have been selected for size, flavor, and high yields.
Pawpaws are related to custard apples and cherimoya, in the sugar apple family, and yet they grow in the temperate zone, having moved north as Ice Age glaciers receded. Flavors of mango, banana and pineapple come from this creamy fruit. But if you don’t know what you’re doing and you let them get bruised, or you pick them under-ripe, you can end up with a bitter taste in your mouth, or a bellyache. So get this book!

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good basic book for those who want to grow pawpaws. Great recipes too.

[R. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful illustrations and pictures with lots of great info.