Pawpaw

Ecology & Conservation

Proximity Score

1

Native Status

❌ Outaouais ❌ Ottawa ❌ QC ✅ ON

Closest Direction

S

CEC Eco-Regions

8 – Eastern Temperate Forests, 8.1 – Mixed Wood Plains, 8.1.1 – Eastern Great Lakes and Hudson Lowlands

Rarity Notes

Globally secure (G5) but nationally rare in Canada (N3). Ontario rank S3 (Vulnerable) reflects limited Canadian range confined to the Carolinian zone of southwestern Ontario, primarily the Niagara Peninsula. Not listed under SARA or COSEWIC. Specimens cluster around Niagara Falls, St. Catharines, and St. Davids in the Niagara region.

S22S26S48

Rarity Ranks

ON S3 – Vulnerable

Migration

Stable

Ecological Context

An understorey tree of rich mesic deciduous forests, typically found on deep alluvial soils of river valleys and bottomlands. Associates with beech-maple, oak-hickory, and basswood forests. In Michigan, habitats include rich low woods along rivers, floodplains, and swamp forests. Forms clonal colonies via root suckers in the understorey of mature forests.

S7S10S29

Permaculture & Companion Planting

Roles

Fire Retardant, Wildlife Habitat

S73/S29/S72 Evidence: Fire Retardant: S73 [MEDIUM]: S11 Fire Tolerance = Medium (not definitional)] | Wildlife Habitat: S72 Hemenway (tables: 10-1, appendix_a, pp. 149, 186)]

Notes

Pawpaw functions as a productive understorey tree in food forest guilds, providing wildlife habitat and edible fruit. Tolerates juglone from black walnut. Its suckering habit creates natural thickets that shelter woodland fauna. Listed by Hemenway as a low tree layer species for temperate food forests.

S72S29S3

Edibility & Foraging

ℹ

Never ingest a plant unless you have 100% certainty of its identity and have consulted multiple reputable sources. The information provided in the Localeaf Plant Database is compiled from secondary sources for educational and historical purposes only.

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✅ Edible    ✅ Commonly Eaten

Foraging Notes

Fruit eaten raw or cooked; large berry up to 16 cm long with custard-banana flavour. Cherokee used fruit fresh; Iroquois mashed fruit into cakes, dried for winter stores, and mixed with corn bread. Fruit can cause gastrointestinal upset in some individuals. Seeds are poisonous and must not be consumed.

S28S29S4

Toxicity

△ Low Toxicity

Not listed in Cornell poisonous plants database; USDA Toxicity=None. However, seeds contain the toxic alkaloid asiminine and are poisonous. Leaves and fruit handling can cause contact dermatitis in sensitive individuals. Fruit is safe to eat in moderation but excessive consumption has been linked to potential neurotoxicity from annonaceous acetogenins.

S38S11S29

Seed Source

• Ferri Seeds
• Arboquebecium