Monroe County Master Gardener Association

by Jennie S.

Saturday I saw some yellow goo on the drive near my pawpaw tree and realized the fruits were dropping, ripe early!  I had cut a bouquet last spring from the demo garden trees and tied the branches in a water bottle in my single, so far unfruitful tree at home, for pollination. It worked!  My first crop, and I only got to pick one of them because the other dozen or fell off the tree. They were still tasty and I began to think the demo garden fruits were probably also falling. Kay and I went Tuesday afternoon and, sure enough, salvaged roughly half of them by picking them up and the other half by picking from the tree with long-handled fruit pickers. (Gail should have been there to take a photo of that!) Here is a photo of my pollenizer bouquet and one of the demo garden harvest on my kitchen table where I peeled, seeded and froze the very ripe ones. I plan to make ice cream from the frozen pulp and share it at the potluck again, but really the best way to enjoy them is fresh. Come visit me soon so I can give you  a few of the firmer ones, which should keep for a few more days on my counter or refrigerated. Otherwise I will have to peel and seed them, too.