Photos From Pawpaw Orchard Show & Tell
Photos by Debbie Roos, Agricultural Extension Agent.
These photos are from Chatham County Cooperative Extension’s Pawpaw Orchard Show & Tell held on September 8, 2014 at Full of Life Farms outside of Pittsboro. Grower Wynn Dinnsen grows over 250 pawpaw trees and evaluates them for flavor and favorable seed-to-pulp ratio. Pawpaws (Asimina triloba) are our largest native fruits and are tasty, nutritious, and easy to grow. Wynn sells pawpaw fruit and pulp to several local restaurants and breweries.
Click on each photo to view a larger image.

Visitors enjoyed tasting the pawpaws. The flavor can be variable but many describe it as a cross between mango, pineapple, and banana.

Pawpaws are relatively easy to grow and generally not susceptible to pests and diseases, making them an attractive option for organic growers.

Wynn keeps detailed records on each tree and numbers the fruit so he can evaluate flavor and seed-to-pulp ratio.

Pawpaw fruit has a creamy texture and is bright yellow to orange in color. The fruit is very nutritious and delicious!

Wynn places dead fish caught in his pond in the orchard to attract the flies that pollinate the pawpaw flowers. The stench attracts the flies.

Wynn’s pawpaws are in high demand from area chefs. Local breweries also use them to make pawpaw beer.
Wynn sells pawpaw trees through Country Farm & Home Supply in Pittsboro so farmers and gardeners can grow their own!
For more information about pawpaw production:
- North Carolina Pawpaw Festival
- Organic Production of Pawpaw – Kentucky State University
- Forest Production of Pawpaw – Kentucky State University
- Pawpaw Planting Guide – Kentucky State University
- Pawpaw Growing Information – Kentucky State University
- Specialty Crop Profile: Pawpaw – Virginia Cooperative Extension
- Pawpaw: a Tropical Fruit for Temperate Climates – ATTRA