PANHANDLE PAWPAW PROJECT

An incredible story that began at least 56 Million years ago (!!!), the fruit we've come to commonly call the pawpaw is a bit of a temperate miracle. The pawpaw is a fleshy, complex fruit tasting like a cross between banana, jackfruit, pineapple, cinnamon and other flavors- depending on your taste palate. How did this tropically rooted descendant creep its way north during glacial retreats to establish as our mainland's largest native fruit? We may never know the precise answers here (we do have some solid ideas) but, suffice to say, no matter where the pawpaw establishes itself it draws people and critters alike for veritable feasts. We do know, unlike its tropical cousins (11 of 13 stateside Annonas thrive only in Southern Georgia and Florida), pawapaws require chilling hours and they can absolutely tolerate sub zero temperatures. What a gift! 

Throughout the Great Lakes and Southeast, pawpaws catalyze festivals and celebrations and yet they remain mysteriously outside the mainstream consciousness - even where they still grow quite comfortably. Pawpaws are not native to our Inland Northwest region but that certainly does not mean we can not try to establish a rogue population of our own. It will provide challenges, to be sure, and there will be many bumps along the way. BUT, after stratifying; germinating; growing and working seedlings of my own for five years up the Panhandle way...I am convinced we have a legitimate chance to taste our very own Panhandle pawpaw fruits.

Here's hoping somewhere down the line we'll have our own celebratory Sandpoint Pawpaw Festival to come together and tell stories and sing songs of our journeys together.