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jplayland

PawPaw Grafting

jplayland
11 years ago

I'm looking to try growing PA Golden. From what I can find, it looks like PawPaw isn't going to be compatible with any other fruit trees, right?

The question is:

Can I start a seedling, graft (rootstock) the main scion, and the year after, graft (topwork) a second scion for polination?

Will this be viable long term? I'm hoping to avoid having to keep two PawPaw trees alive for my experiment.

Comments (48)

  • murkwell
    11 years ago

    That should be fine if it is growing well. I have a Pennsylvania Golden with a Peterson pawpaw grafted onto it as you describe. I also have Wilson with a different Peterson grafted to it.

    I assume they both started on seedlings as rootstock.

    The grafts were done whip and tongue probably in mid spring and took just fine. Because I expect to prefer the Peterson pawpaws (which at the time were very hard to procure), I prune to favor them.

  • alexander3_gw
    11 years ago

    Even if one of the varieties starts to decline by getting shaded out or whatever, you can regraft it to another branch.

  • Noogy
    11 years ago

    jplay,
    In february we located a group of pawpaws and translplanted them bare root in early spring, in this 'case', since things warmed up so fast. They're all doing well, stick with small trees, 4' and smaller. The roots from all the trees were connected, clonal source. I' look forward to grafting the peterson's varieties sometime soon. good luck

  • murkwell
    11 years ago

    The Peterson varieties are patented.

    I bought a couple of scions directly from Neal Peterson. Now that the trees are available from a variety of sources, I don't think he'll be selling any more individual scions.

    I know he was very protective of them after the work he put into it.

  • jplayland
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    I'm in zone 4b and my main concern is the hardyness of the grafts themselves. I've heard from two different folks up here that they had no success on grafted paw paws. Instead each had success with either the rootstock (sucker) surviving and producing, or with seedlings surviving, growing, and expecting production this year or next.

  • treebird101
    11 years ago

    Grafting pawpaw is pretty simple. I've found the whip and tongue to work the best. I think the key is to graft onto an established tree that is just beginning to break dormancy. I'm in zone 5a and grafts seem to survive just fine here. Maybe wrap the union in parafilm, that might help. We have a pawpaw orchard in its infancy with 30 plus trees also a new variety that me and my wife discovered recently called Halvin. Clifford England will have this variety available for 2013. We discovered it St. Joseph, MO. which is about an hour from where we live. The fruits ripen very well here and are enormous,near 1 lb. The largest fruits we've found in all our years of pawpaw hunting also amazing flavor with no aftertaste. It might do great in your zone.

  • harbin_gw
    11 years ago

    Treebird, is your variety early?

  • treebird101
    11 years ago

    Well I found pawpaws to ripen differently in different conditions, for instance in direct sun light compared to growing in the shade. Also hot summer compared to a cool summer. The same goes for most fruit. Halvin is from zone 5b and we picked fruits generally the first part of September to the end of September for some fruits. Halvin hasn't fruited in full sun yet because the trees were only grafted this year. The fruits are the largest we've ever come across in the wild and from a more northern region and large fruit can usually take longer to ripen but Halvin ripens completely on the tree starting the first part of September. Generally the further north you get as with all things nut and fruit, generally are smaller do to shorter growing/ripening season. But Halvin ripens generally average in time for its size in our region from my observation. The earliest ripening discoveries we've found were all from trees that had exposure to full sun, which also makes the fruit taste sweeter in my opinion. I would say try it in full sun, if it is as great as it is growing in the shade it should be outstanding growing in full sun but keep in mind pawpaws should be shaded the first two years.

  • treebird101
    11 years ago

    Young pawpaw trees need protection from direct sunlight the first 2 years.

  • treebird101
    11 years ago

    What trees will look like in another year of growing. bear with me things have been rough with the drought this year.

  • armyofda12mnkeys
    11 years ago

    Does anyone have pics of how pawpaw fruit look like when they are just starting to take form, like just lil' 1centimeter long. I went to 2 parks this weekend and saw clusters of lil' 1cm green fruit on trees that their leaves I was pretty sure were pawpaws, plus they were growing close to some creeks which i heard pawpaws do sometimes. But the fruit I thought was pretty small for around August 1st (i would assume they would be in the inches area), and they kinda tasted like an evergreen when I bit into it (but most things taste acidic i guess when they unripe hehe). Any pics anyone of how their fruit is looking now?

  • alexander3_gw
    11 years ago

    armyofda12mnkeys, I suspect the small fruit you found were spicebush. They grow in the same kind of places as pawpaws, and the leaves are similar in appearance (search google images) Spicebush leaves have a nice odor like some kind of spice when crushed, pawpaw leaves smell kind of bad. Pawpaw fruit should be much larger than 1 cm by now, even small fruited wild plants. They should look pretty much like a fully formed fruit, just smaller. The spicebush fruit will turn bright red this fall.

    Here is a document with an article on hand pollination of pawpaws that includes a photo of a newly formed fruit cluster.

    http://www.clemson.edu/hort/peach/pdfs/FG97.pdf

    Alex

    Here is a link that might be useful: newly formed pawpaw fruit

  • armyofda12mnkeys
    11 years ago

    Cool thanks alexander for the headsup on spicebush.
    Darn I'll have to look more harder for pawpaws then :).

  • Monyet
    11 years ago

    The tree's i bought from Keeling do have a good root ball,but it is not what i like because it does not have taproot and that is what i am looking for, because of droughts in my area.The 2 tree's are growing but not fast.
    Keeling graft my tree's with the splice graft.Treebird you are doing the right way,the way you set-up your tree's,nice spacing.You know you going to fill-up rather quickly.

  • treebird101
    11 years ago

    True true bob. I can understand but Ive had great success with Forrest Keeling Nursery trees. I have several other trees in other areas from other suppliers who sent bare root trees and they survived quite well and flurished but it seems like they took twice as long to get established. I think the key is water water water for the first two years.

  • treebird101
    11 years ago

    My tree spacing in the orchard for the pawpaws is 12 ft by 20 ft. My persimmons are 20 by 20.

  • Monyet
    11 years ago

    I would sooner plant seed's in the area where they are going to grow permanent.You can start that way or start the seed's in long skinny planters like this picture.

  • segbug
    10 years ago

    Hi treebird and everyone here in this group, I am growing pawpaws in the UK and most interested in the very earliest ripening types as our summers are not as hot and long as in the USA. I already have Kentucky champion and Summer delight which I bought from Cliff England/Woody Walker. I sure would be interested in buying some scion wood and seeds of Sidewinder and any other early ripening type that you happen to know of as I think it has potential here- I don't mind if the fruit isnt the biggest, mainly Im looking for early types with good tasting fruit that I can test out here and possibly do some crossing with in the future if they prove to be good. I am a fruit enthusiast and hope if I am successful to encourage others to grow this fruit in the UK more. I also have your selection Halvin which I also got from Cliff that I am going to grow in a polytunnel PLease get in touch, my e-mail is seg_bug@yahoo.co.uk. Anyone else knowing of any early ripening types they've discovered please get in touch, I would love to hear from you. Seg :)

  • treebird101
    10 years ago

    Sidewinder is a very early yellow fruit that is very sweet. The seediness is is just as average as your typical wild pawpaw. The fruit is also not big like select varieties. We just use the sidewinder tree as our first stop of the year to satisfy our pawpaw craving. It begins dropping fruit 3 to 4 weeks before any of the other pawpaw native to our area. It produces plenty of fruit though and the flavor is better than average. I don't think I have the means to ship to another country but I can send wood to Cliff if he agrees to it and maybe he can send it to you. Again I don't promote this as an absolute superior fruit because of it's average qualities but if you want fruit early, sidewinder is certainly choice for that.

  • treebird101
    10 years ago

    Sidewinder is a very early yellow fruit that is very sweet. The seediness is is just as average as your typical wild pawpaw. The fruit is also not big like select varieties. We just use the sidewinder tree as our first stop of the year to satisfy our pawpaw craving. It begins dropping fruit 3 to 4 weeks before any of the other pawpaw native to our area. It produces plenty of fruit though and the flavor is better than average. I don't think I have the means to ship to another country but I can send wood to Cliff if he agrees to it and maybe he can send it to you. Again I don't promote this as an absolute superior fruit because of it's average qualities but if you want fruit early, sidewinder is certainly choice for that.

  • segbug
    10 years ago

    Thanks Treebird. I will get in touch with Cliff and see if we can arrange something. Best wishes, Seg :-)

  • milehighgirl
    10 years ago

    I am surprised that my dead pawpaw is sending up new shoots. This makes me very happy! Will it be too soon to graft to them next spring? Should I select one single shoot now or try to separate them and have more rootstocks?

  • franktank232
    10 years ago

    My paw paw that dropped all of its leaves early this summer has all new leaves now... not a lot of growth, but it should take off a little more next summer ...or so i hope.

  • treebird101
    10 years ago

    I went to check on the original "Halvin" pawpaw tree today to see if there was any fruit on the section of the tree I let grow out in hopes to taste the yummy fruit again. I couldn't believe it there was a ripe cluster of two hanging within reach. The fruits dropped into my hands when I touched them. You are looking at over two pounds of fruit here. The flavor was still outstanding! Sweet pineapple flavor with no bitter aftertaste.

  • Greg
    10 years ago

    Wow those Halvin pawpaws look so good!

    Now that I have tried pawpaws and really like them I want to grow more of them and graft my two seedlings that are in the ground.

    I have a few questions, first how long does it take a grafted branch to start making fruit if the tree you are grafting it onto is already producing?
    Would the time be the same if the graft was from a mature tree or a seedling?
    Last has any tired "Potomac" and know were I could purchase cuttings? I want to try to eventually breed larger and darker colored fruits and it seems like a good starting point. Thanks Greg

  • Tony
    10 years ago

    Greg,

    The fastest way to get a grafted paw paw branch to fruit is to collect the pawpaw scionwood with flower buds from the dormant wood. I grafted several paw paws last spring and they all bloomed this spring. I had to pinched off all the flowers to allow the branches to get bigger to support the fruits for next year.

    Tony

  • treebird101
    10 years ago

    Great advice Tony. Thanks for the compliments Greg. Here's a Halvin Pawpaw sweet and creamy cut in three sections. Again this is a lot of fruit!

  • treebird101
    10 years ago

    For there being over a pound of fruit in this photo of a single Halvin pawpaw, there's not much left but a little skin and only 6 seeds. I think this would make some people envious, especially if you were breeding for hardly any seed and someone goes out in the wild of Iowa and finds the perfect pawpaw.

  • sandy_village
    10 years ago

    I've got 2 Pawpaw trees that I don't know the type ...but I have 6 scions for A. Parviflora to graft this Spring...read about the tongue & whip...but when is best...anyone have photos to help this beginner?

  • wildforager
    10 years ago

    An old timers rule is to graft when the leaves are the size of a squirrels ear. As for your type of graft, I'd skip the whip and tongue and use a cleft graft. Simple and easy with good success rate. Good Luck!

  • Bradybb WA-Zone8
    10 years ago

    Sandy,
    I was going to get in touch.I have a couple plants if still wanted.
    Parviflora,isn't that a dwarf variety that grows in Florida?

    Little John,
    How are those Pawpaw doing that I sent?The Elderberry and Cornus mas look okay but I couldn't get the Currants to grow. Brady

  • sandy_village
    10 years ago

    Wildforager...a squirrels ear, eh? Well...that got me giggling but it helps me remember what to look for! I haven't tried the cleft graft but reading up on it...and watching youtube video to learn...Thanks!

    Bradybb...absolutely...were we doing a trade? postage? Let me know!

  • wildforager
    10 years ago

    Brady, Those seedlings are still going! Sorry to hear about the currants. Email me privately and maybe we can set up another trade.

  • pawpawlover
    8 years ago
    last modified: 8 years ago

    treebird101, I live in Southern Iowa as well, and have 50 pawpaw trees in y backyard. I also found a really nice pawpaw variety that is not a grafted tree. Large and delicious fruit. If you like, we can trade. Contact me at mb@letsorderonline.com

  • David F.
    8 years ago

    Hi Treebird101, I was wondering if you had any Halvin paw paw scionwood.

  • jianhuayegreentree
    8 years ago

    Pawpaw is pretty easy to graft. Here is my cleft graft tree in grafted in 2013 and this is the first time bear the fruit. The closer branch is NC-1 and the other branch is PA-Gold.

  • jianhuayegreentree
    8 years ago

  • creekweb
    8 years ago

    Nice looking fruit jianhuayegreentree. Skins mostly look very clean.

    I find that when grafting larger trees it's been essential to remove all competing branches or else either the graft won't take or will shortly die off. I have some larger trees that weren't producing adequately, and so this past spring I wanted to topwork to more productive cultivars but hesitated to butcher some of them - the grafts on these didn't take. Next year, all the modest producers are getting butchered as part of the topworking process.

  • jianhuayegreentree
    8 years ago

    The one in picture is a small tree with only two main branches. I top worked both with nc-1 and pa-gold. I have a big tree. The main branch was top worked and grows nicely. But most side branch failed. so I have lot to do when spring coming. Pawpaw is tough and can stand the heavy work.:-)

  • Tony
    8 years ago
    last modified: 8 years ago

    Here are what I am eating right now. Shenandoah and Mango. Both are very large and excellent flavor.

    Tony

    SHENANDOAH

    MANGO

  • jianhuayegreentree
    8 years ago

    Tony, Good look looking tree and good harvest. Enjoy.

  • John Jiang
    2 years ago

    After reading your jianhuayegreentree post, it seems he has successfully grafted on a branch of a main tree. i have a shenandoah pawpaw but i am thinking to graft another variety in one of the branches. I failed this spring. The new graft died after having new growth Because strong apical growth of main tree outgrow the grafted branch. Any one has successfully done the similar grafting that only graft one branch in a main tree?

  • jianhuayegreentree
    2 years ago

    if you want to graft on branches, choose the main branch or the strongest branch. Also need to trim new buds that comes out below the graft point.

  • John Jiang
    2 years ago

    Thank you, jianhuayegreentree! My pawpaw is 4th year and about 7 ft tall. i can graft on the central lead (the middle main trunk growth) that should be the strongest growth. However, i can not remove all new buds on branches below the graft point. Otherwise my tree will not grow and it still quite small even though it’s high. Any more comment would be appreciated.

  • jianhuayegreentree
    2 years ago

    Not all new buds on other branches. just the main branch up to the the side branches. i have successfully grafted on side branches. but it just not grow fast as otother branches.

  • John Jiang
    2 years ago



  • John Jiang
    2 years ago
    last modified: 2 years ago

    @jianhuayegreentree, I have uploaded a picture. Two cicles are the areas of two branches i grafted early spring but they did not survive finally. They are the only branches at that time. All other branches are the new growrh this year. I will try to graft again next year. preferably, i would like not to cut the main trunk but any other branches will be fine. i can choose the topmost two branches (two red lines) other than the main trunk to graft. do you think what the probability for them to survive? i am thinking it may be easier for scion to survive when tree become bigger because the growth vogor will reduce so the competition between scion and other growth may not be that strong. how big is your tree that you had grafted successfully? A picture of the tree and the growth condition of the survived brach would be very helpful. Thanks for the comments. @jianhuayegreentree.