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TT: Re: Paw Paw
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> Universally, nobody has ever heard of a Paw Paw.
Here in the subtropical north-eastern part of South Africa
we grow so many Paw Paws I thought they were an
African tree ... but I see my fruit tree book says they're
native to South America.
The species we grow here is Carica papaya. It has
dioecious ( male and female trees separate) and
hermaphrodite ( male & female flowers on same tree)
cultivars. The fruit is rugby ball ( do you play rugby
in the USA) sized and shaped.
In hot areas the trees bear fruit in all months of the
year. Paw paws are best grown in your own back yard
as the fruit flavous is best if the paw paw is left
to ripen on the tree. Fruit for marketing is picked early
and ripens after four or five days. Apparently it can
be dried.
The trees contain a white juice or latex containing a
chemical called papain which is used in meat tenderizing,
brewing and tanning. Papain is usually taken from full-size
unripe fruit.
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