A field guide to America's largest native fruit

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Ketter Pawpaw

Wild and Heirloom

Ketter is a Wild and Heirloom variety, early season.

Flavor
Mild but very rich flavor, neither insipid nor cloying; medium-yellow flesh
Size
Large
Ripening
Early season
Productivity
Matures evenly across the tree
Notes
An older heirloom that has lent its name to seedling selections such as Fairchild. Yellow fruit with a comparatively thick, tough skin that does not discolor markedly.

What growers say

Ketter pawpaw is an older Ohio heirloom with a mild but very rich flavor that is neither insipid nor cloying, carried in medium-yellow flesh under a thick, tough skin that resists discoloring. The large fruit matures early and evenly across the tree. It is an established heirloom that has lent its name to seedling selections, though firsthand grower feedback is limited.

Where to buy Ketter pawpaw trees

No verified nursery in the directory lists Ketter by name yet. Many growers sell it through the mail-order and online nurseries on PawpawMap, and you can browse nurseries by state to find a source near you.

Related cultivars

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Overleese

Mid to late season, ripening the first week of October in Michigan

Rich, full pawpaw flavor; long valued as a benchmark variety

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Sunflower

Late season, ripening the first week of October in Michigan

Sweet and pleasant; a widely grown classic

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NC-1

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Davis

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Taytwo

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Pennsylvania Golden

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Classic, strong wild pawpaw flavor

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Mango

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Rich, candied-banana flavor with vivid orange-yellow pulp

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Wells

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Reported sweet, but flavor and other traits are not authoritatively documented

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Prolific

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Sweet, yellow-fleshed fruit; sets heavily, often without hand pollination

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Taylor

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Mild pawpaw flavor; yellow flesh with green skin

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Uncle Tom

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Historic selection valued more for its place in pawpaw history than for documented flavor

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Dr. Potter

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Buckman

Late to very late season

Mild flavor with white flesh

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Wilson

Mid season, ripening in September in Kentucky

Sweet, banana-pear flavor with a custard texture

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Halvin

Early season, ripening late August in Kentucky

Very sweet and smooth with no aftertaste and a hint of pineapple

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IXL

Late season

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Rebecca's Gold

Mid to late season, ripening September to October

Very sweet and richly flavored

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Lynn's Favorite

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Mary Foos Johnson

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Sweet Alice

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Horn's White

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Unusually white, creamy, very sweet flesh with coconut and cherimoya notes

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