Paw Paw Gardening Guide

How to Plant Paw Paw

Upon arrival, check containers for moisture, if not moist to the touch, add water and allow the containers to drain. If you are not ready to plant, keep plants in a semi-shaded and protected area. Do try and plant as soon as possible, the sooner in the ground, the sooner roots will be made. Until planting, keep the soil moist to the touch; do not allow the containers to dry out.

When planting, dig the hole at least 11/2 to 2 times the size of the container. Planting height is important, attempt to set the plant in the hole at the exact depth of the soil in the pot, it’s better to be a 1/2 high, than a 1/2 low. When you back-fill the hole, if your soil is good, use that soil, but if you feel your soil can be improved, back-fill with a good organic soil or compost. If your soil tends to dry out, you can add a little peat moss, if your soil is moist, a little sand can be added.

Caring for Paw Paw

Paw Paw are native plants in over half the United States, they grow very quickly, especially years 2–3–4. Allow at least 8' between the plants. Paw Paws are tricky to get great pollination between plants, so planting at a space of 8' is very important. Paw Paw do well in full sun to some partial shading, no more than 3–4 hours of shade per day. They like acidic soils in the range of ph being 5–6. Critical is well drained soils, they do not like wet feet. Fertilizing annually with well-balanced and equal parts N–K–P is perfect, and compost added as mulch around the roots will assist in providing a constant feeding of organic matter. Pruning is easy, follow same rules as a fruit tree, removing old, non-producing wood.