Asimina triloba
American papaw · also Pawpaw, Paw paw, Paw-paw
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Asimina triloba is a small deciduous understory tree with large leaves, producing edible, sweet, custard-like fruit. Its purple, cup-shaped flowers emit a faint, fetid odor to attract beetles for pollination. While the fruit is prized for its unique flavor, the bark, leaves, and seeds contain a neurotoxin. It thrives in shaded, moist environments of hardwood forests in eastern North America.
Where it grows
Trees in each city's inventory, with the share of that city's named trees this species accounts for.
- 510.03%2.8 yr2.0 in
- 210.03%5.8 yr2.0 in
- 150.00%2.4 yr0.4 in
- 140.01%7.5 yr8.5 in
- 110.00%—2.4 in
- 50.00%—3.0 in
- 40.00%—2.3 in
- 40.01%—1.6 in
- 40.00%——
- 30.01%——
- 10.00%——
- 10.00%—2.4 in
Traits
- Form
- Broadleaf
- Foliage
- Deciduous
- Mature height
- 15–25 ft
- Canopy spread
- 15–25 ft
- Growth rate
- Moderate
- Wildlife value
- High
- Blooms
- Mar, Apr, May
Trunk diameters across every city: median 2.0 in, mean 2.9 in, 90th percentile 7.0 in. Measured at breast height, as published by each inventory.
Native range
Terrestrial ecoregions where this species is native. Trees in the dataset mostly stand well outside it.
Temperate Broadleaf & Mixed Forests
- Mississippi lowland forests