The pawpaw (also paw paw or paw-paw) is the largest edible fruit indigenous to the United States. The tree can be found in some Maryland State Parks. My interest in the fruit started back in September. Both the Elk Neck State Park and the Merkle Wildlife Sanctuary sent Tweets with photos as the fruit was ripening on trees at their locations. Comments like “delicious” and “a cross between a mango and a banana” were shared in the tweets. I made a mental note to look into this.
Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay Program has a web page with information on the pawpaw related to the state. The fruit can be found throughout the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Fruit develop on the trees in September and October.
I will try the fresh fruit when they come into season for 2016. To get a taste sooner, I’ll have to try a preserved version. I ordered pawpaw jam from a specialty foods company. I’m looking forward to tasting something that’s “a cross between a mango and a banana”. Let me know if there are any paw paw fruit stands around Maryland.
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