Pawpaws: The Complete Growing and Marketing Guide

A great reference book with lots of information. Clear diagrams, some wonderful color photos, though having color photos of all the pests mentioned would have been nice. I especially liked the sections on varieties, flavor differences between the different colors of pulp, cautions for sensitivities in some people and the marketing information.

This is the third book I’ve read on pawpaws, and it’s by far the best and most comprehensive. The intended audience is people who actually want to plant and grow pawpaws, either on a commercial scale or as a backyard hobby.The author has obviously done his homework AND his fieldwork.Homework: Cothron has researched historical and horticultural information, spoken with many pawpaw growers, nursery operators, breeders, researchers and members of pawpaw growers’ associations. He lives conveniently near Kentucky State University (KSU) which is the foremost institution researching and conducting plant breeding for pawpaws, and refers often to their work. He also has apparently had a lot of conversations with Neal Peterson, the man who is largely responsible for tracking down promising pawpaw varieties first propagated a century ago, and picked up the torch in the 1970’s to continue selecting and breeding them to produce many of the best modern cultivars—arguably the leading expert on pawpaws and most tenacious evangelist.Fieldwork: The author owns and operates a small organic farm and nursery and has years of firsthand experience successfully propagating, planting, growing, harvesting, and marketing pawpaws. And, importantly, he has also had his problems and failures, and shares those experiences as cautionary tales for his readers.This book covers everything a new pawpaw grower needs to know, from planting seeds, choosing the best cultivars, grafting, nursery practices, orchard site selection, establishing the young orchard, tending the mature orchard, identifying and managing pests and diseases, harvesting fruit, marketing fresh fruit, pulp and/or products and, finally, when to cut down that declining tree to replant with a new one.Noteworthy is the chapter on pawpaw cultivars, which describes all known pawpaw varieties—a list that weighs in at 27 pages—undoubtedly the most comprehensive available. That alone is worth the price of the book, which costs less than a single grafted pawpaw tree—money well spent.Another pawpaw book I’ve read is For the Love of Pawpaws by Michael Judd—also written for growers, which is a lighter, quicker read for those who aren’t yet ready to deep dive into the topic. A second book, Pawpaw: In Search of America’s Forgotten Fruit by Andrew Moore is written more for a general audience and isn’t required reading for growers. However, I recommend it to those who want a more holistic overview of pawpaws and their history. Sprinkled throughout the book is a lot of information useful to growers.So if you want to grow pawpaws, this may be the only book you’ll need. Cothron has kept the needs of his readers foremost in his mind, and has provided everything you need to know about growing pawpaws, from seed to fruit to market. Highly recommended!

I planted my first pawpaw trees 14 years ago and have slowly been adding trees since; I wish this book was available before I started as realize now all the things I have been doing wrong (like planting new trees in the fall). Mr Cothron's book is well organized, highly informative without being pedantic and comprehensive covering the practical aspects of starting and maintaining a pawpaw orchard. His assessment of all the pawpaw cultivators available which will be especially helpful to the new pawpaw grower when selecting trees they wish to establish in their orchards. My only criticism is the book's conclusion which is surprisingly a bit negative and contradictory on the current state of the tree noting pawpaws may be more popular in Europe and Asia than North America, that current cultivars need more refining for quality and the need for new propagation techniques. I think his point is that pawpaw growing is a relatively young science and likely evolving. Overall Cothron's book is highly recommended to the new pawpaw enthusiast or someone like myself who has been growing trees for years without really knowing what they are doing.

This book is definitely more guided for the grower and seller. I had a hard time putting it down to be honest. A lot of great information in these pages that I know for sure I am going to be referencing back to. This book is a MUST HAVE in your collection if you’re a pawpaw grower or plan to be! Gives specific information on certain cultivars and I just learned so much from this book! Highly recommend ! So glad I purchased this book! Grateful for the author taking the time it took to write this piece!

Let me say up front that the cultivar list with descriptions is worth the price of the book alone. He details every known cultivar in existence as of 2021 including all the known cultivars of the past that are now likely extinct. If you are a pawpaw lover, whether looking at commercial growing or simply wanting to grow a couple trees in the backyard this is a must have book. He covers all the information needed to be a successful grower of this much underutilized fruit. The book even includes a few recipes for using the fruit once harvested. There is little doubt that the pawpaw is in the midst of a revival these days and the interested grower will find that the author has covered all the basics in this very enlightening book.

Very good information about the planting and care of Pawpaws. Perfect timing as the fruit is ripening now and folks are looking for Pawpaws in the woods and at Farmers Markets to buy.

Buy this book if you want to grow paw paws..thier a hard plant to get growing and this book will put you on the road to success

Good reference book for growing PawPaw

Well written, informative. Table of pawpaw cultivars very useful.

Très intéressant et instructif, mais trop peu d'illustrations, c'est dommage.

I planted 3 trees in my backyard (zone 5b) earlier this spring.This book will be my guide as my trees grow.

Great information if you are interested in Paw Paw and want to grow them from plant or seed.