Late Summer Abundance: Time to harvest Papaws, Figs, and Muscadines!
Sarah and Lucy walking under the muscadine arbor in their homestead in Decatur, Georgia.
Fruit Trees and Berries are a staple of any of our edible and ecological landscape installations across Atlanta, so which sweet treats are we biting into right now? Late summer gifts us with the delightful trio of Pawpaws, Figs, and Muscadines! Depending on the varieties and where you are in Georgia, these three fruits are ripe for the taking as you peruse your snackyard through August and early September. Not only are they a tasty addition to any edible landscape, but they are also three of our most ornamental edibles, each providing different textures, shapes, and structure to our living designs. Let us tell you all about them!
The Pawpaw Tree
A pawpaw tree in the neighborhood of Oakhurst in Decatur, GA loaded with pawpaws that are nearly ripe!
The pawpaw is one of just a few fruit trees native to Georgia, and it is also one of the most tropical looking (and tasting!) trees that you can grow in your snackyard. It has large, oblong leaves between 5 - 10 inches long that droop down from a round / pyramidal branching structure. As an added bonus, the pawpaw is a host tree to our native swallowtail butterfly!
Fruit: If you’ve never been lucky enough to taste the fruit, imagine a custard-like texture, similar to that of a ripe avocado, with a flavor similar to a cross between banana and mango. Never heard of a pawpaw? That’s because they bruise easily and have a short shelf life. This makes them difficult to ship and therefore unlikely to show up in your local grocery store. This rare delicacy is a fun party trick, we guarantee most people have never tasted a fresh pawpaw before!
Harvesting Pawpaw: With all fruit, the harvesting season depends on the cultivar, variety, and location of the tree. In Atlanta, most pawpaws are beginning to ripen in August and September. The pawpaws in Oakhurst, for example, produce a fruit that is about 4-5 inches long. You should give them a light squeeze to determine if they are soft enough to pick, similar to a peach. If they are still firm, do not harvest them yet. Don’t forget to check the ground as well; they will often fall at peak ripeness. Unlike Figs, pawpaws will continue to soften and sweeten on your countertops, so it is really a matter of taste of what you consider to be your ideal ripe level. Don’t be deterred by browning or blemishes, this is often a sign of a soon to be experienced sweet delight!
Cooking with Pawpaws: You can puree pawpaws for ice cream, smoothies, or even pies – if you are able to make it to the kitchen without eating them first! Most recently, we saw Little Bear, a restaurant located in Decatur, was making a “PAWLOMA” a “Paloma riff that cuts out the crappy store bought lemon lime soda and brings the late summer Georgia goodness instead” using tequila, paw paw, vanilla, lime, soda. Sounds prawpawsterously tasty to us!
In the Edible Landscape: Due to its broad leaves and yellow fall foliage, the pawpaw is a great tree to use as a focal point in the landscape, a mid-level canopy layer in a food forest setting, or planted in groups as a background planting. It is also one of the best fruit trees to grow in shady areas, but like all fruit, the more sun it receives, the more fruit it will produce.
Daniel checking out our 3 year old pawpaw tree being grown in a semi-shady corner of our snackyard landscape. This tree will likely double in size in the coming years.
Height & Spread: Typically 15-20’tall and wide, but can reach up to 30’ in ideal conditions.
Spacing: 10’ - 30’’ spacing. To maximize fruiting, closer spacing is recommended.
USDA Hardiness Zone: 5-9. Hardy to -10 ℉.
Ornamental Value: Lush, green tropical appearing oblong-leaves that change to bright yellow in the fall; Purple-burgundy blooms in spring.
Sun Needs: Part Shade to Full Sun
Soil Needs: Pawpaws thrive in moist, fertile, well-drained soils having a pH of 5.5 to 7.0
Varieties: Despite being native, pawpaws are a rare commodity and often when they are available they are unnamed varieties. That changed this year! We sourced several Peterson Pawpaw varieties that we have now grown with success and can attest to how DELICIOUS they are. Here is a run down of the different varieties:
We are excited to offer three extremely rare varieties of pawpaw trees - Shenandoah™, Susquehanna®, and Potomac®. These varieties were bread by world renown pawpaw breeder, Neal Peterson, to have fruits that are larger, fleshier, and more flavorful than non-names cultivars.
Susquehanna® - Often regarded as the most popular and best tasting pawpaw varieties available, Susquehanna® produces the largest and latest ripening fruit of any of the Peterson Pawpaw cultivars. The fruit often grows to weigh over a pound each, is extremely fleshy (only 3% seeds), and delicious in flavor.
Shenandoah™ - One of the original Peterson Pawpaw varieties, Shenandoah™ is a reliable producer with good yields, sweet mild flavor, and succulent, custardy flavor. The fruit often grow to weigh over a pound each, 6% seed by weight, and has a mellow, cherimoya-like flavor that is most popular with pawpaw newbies. This variety is the most popular at the DC farmers market.
Potomac® - Potomac is a sister variety to the Susquehanna® originally grown on the banks of the Potomac River. It produces large 3/4 lb fruit that are very fleshy (only 4% seeds) with smooth, firm, melting texture and sweet flavor. It has a very upright, apical dominant, growth structure that make for a great landscape tree when fully grown.
You won’t find these anywhere else in Georgia (that we know of) so hang on tight for our Fall Snackyard Sale on November 11 where we will hopefully have some available!
The Fig Tree
Figs may be one of the more common fruit trees in landscapes across Georgia and Atlanta, but for good reason! They are one of our most reliable and easy to grow edibles in the Atlanta landscape, and they pack a flavorful punch.
The Fruit: The delicate, teardrop shaped fruit of the fig is one of the most coveted seasonal treats in the snackyard. Because of the delicate nature of the fruit, it is seldom found in grocery stores and often found in the bellies of delighted gardeners. Its soft interior ranges in color from dark red to honey auburn with flavors ranging from fruity to downright jam-like.
Harvesting Figs: Figs ripen as early as June through September, depending on where you are in Georgia. You can allow the figs to fully ripen on the tree, but how do you know they are ripe? There are a few telltale signs. Coloring is a bit deceptive, because that depends on the variety. The Violet De Bordeux will deepen to a purplish color as it ripens, for example, but others will remain a pale green, so it is important to be familiar with your specific variety. Once ripe, the fruit itself will soften and will begin to droop off the stem. They will easily fall when you harvest them. There is often signs of cracking when they are ready. You’ll know quickly if you have harvested too early because there will be milk produced at the stem and the fruit itself will not be as sweet or delicious. Once harvested, figs have a short shelf life so be prepared to process them within the first few days. Refrigerate during that time if you are not using them immediately.
Cooking with Figs: Most commonly used in jams and preserves, figs are actually quite versatile! Add them to greek yogurt with a drizzle of honey for a decadent breakfast or top a fresh summer salad blended with crumbled goat cheese. We’ve even had figs with caramelized onions and balsamic glaze on pizza! The possibilities are endless.
In the Edible Landscape: The broad, lobed leaves and rounded growth structure of the fig make it an excellent ornamental for the snackyard. Great as a standalone focal point, or tucked between other fruit trees to add a variety of textures in the landscape. The branching structure also adds interesting appeal in a winter landscape. With few edible trees offering evergreen appeal, we consider that a major bonus!
Harvest: Spring - Fall
Height & Spread: 6’ - 30’ Tall & Wide Depending on Variety
Spacing: 10 - 30ft apart
USDA Hardiness Zone: 4-9
Ornamental Value: Large, lobed leaves, rounded growth pattern, and interesting winter appeal.
Sun Needs: 6 - 8 hours of direct sunlight for optimal fruit production.
Soil Needs: Loamy, well drained soils are ideal.
Our Recommended Varieties:
Unique branching pattern that provides winter interest in the foodscape!
Celeste - Compact, rounded size ranging from 7’-10’ both tall and wide, making it an excellent choice for growing in containers or in smaller yards. The fruit is exceptionally sweet, giving it the reputation as the’ sugar fig’.
Violet de Bordeaux - Often regarded as the best tasting fig, this compact growing fig tree reaches 6’-10’ tall, 6’ wide, and produces two harvests of sweet, delicious purple-black fruit with a deep red pulp. Due to the compact size, the Violet de Bordeaux fig is one of the best trees for growing in containers on patios or apartment balconies.
Little Miss Figgy - Our smallest variety of fig, and best for containers and small spaces! It has the same delicious tasting fruit as the violet de bordeaux but is smaller in stature growing up to 4-6 feet tall and just 3-4 feet wide. A great option for a patio or courtyard garden; we have them on either side of our archway entrance to our garden snackyard.
LSU Purple - The LSU Purple fig tree is a medium sized tree that grows between 10 - 20ft both tall and wide at maturity, and can produce three distinctive crops of (you guessed it) purple fruit with a sweet, amber flesh.
Brown Turkey - One of the most popular and widely planted figs across the US due to its hardy nature and delicious flavor. It produces two crops, one in spring and fall, and is the largest growing variety that we offer - reaching 10’ - 30’ both tall and wide.
Muscadine Vines
As one of the southern staples, muscadines are as delicious as they are beautiful, lending themselves perfectly for living walls, overhead shade on outdoor structures, or growing on fences or arbors. The improved cultivars are also larger and sweeter than their wild counterparts that can be seen growing at the forest edge throughout the city.
Fruit Sometimes referred to as the southern grape, the muscadine forms large clumps of quarter sized berries with a sweet, jucy interior and a tough, fruity skin. They also produce up to 8x more berries than other grape varieties.
Harvesting Muscadine: Unlike grapes, which ripen simultaneously in clusters, muscadines ripen individually, making them a perfect candidate for the snackyard. Just like figs, coloring is only one indicator and is going to be contingent on the variety you have. Some muscadine take on a purple-ish hue as they ripen, others bronze or yellow. As with most fruit, a taste is a quick indicator of whether they are ready with under ripe muscadines remaining sour and too firm. Unlike pawpaws, they are not climacteric and will not ripen on your counter.
Cooking with Muscadine: Generally, muscadines can be used in any recipe that typically uses grapes including wine, james, jellies, pies, etc. Muscadines boast a more powerful antioxidant punch than grapes, so you can feel good about your snackyard choice! Personally, we love popping them right off the vine!
In the Edible Landscape Muscadines are perfect for hiding unsightly views, adding a decorative look on arbors or outdoor structures, or for using to create a living wall on lattice. We have two varieties that we grow on the archway entrances to our backyard annual garden, and we love walking into the garden and snacking on the hanging fruit in the summer.
Favorite Varieties:
Late Fry - Late Fry is a bronze, self fertile variety of muscadine that produces late in the season. It is one of the sweetest varieties available, irresistible fresh off the vine, with a sugar content of 20%.
Sweet Jenny - One of the best muscadines for the backyard grower, sweet jenny is as sweet as the name implies, producing large berries with a sugar content of 23%. It has excellent vine vigur, is very resistant to disease, and ripens early to mid season. In order to produce fruit, this variety must be planted within 50ft of a self fertile variety.
Tara - Tara is a high yielding, self-fertile variety of muscadine that produces large bronze berries early in the season. It is very resistant to disease, and a great choice for backyard growers.
Carlos - If you have any interest in experimenting with making wine, Carlos is the muscadine for you. Known as the standard for making white muscadine wine, this bronze to pink, medium sized berry has a sugar content of 16%. It is vigorous, disease resistant, and self-fertile.
Harvest: Late Summer
Height & Spread: Vines can grow up to 20 ft when trained on a wire trellis
Spacing: 15’-20’
USDA Hardiness Zone: 7-10
Ornamental Value: Small, grape looking leaves look amazing when used for living walls, trellises, or growing on fences or pergolas.
Sun Needs: Full sun to partial shade
Soil Needs: Adaptable to a wide range of soils. Do great in Georgia clay
So, you want to try all these fruits for yourself? Here’s how!
Grow your own! But where do you Source these Special Fruit Tree Varieties? Look no further! Each spring we do a Snackyard Fruit Tree Sale and event that includes fruit trees, berries, beer, and an educational session! We will do a discounted pre-sale this fall, so make sure to sign up for the wait lists for any varieties you have your eyes on, and we will notify you when presale is available.
Don’t have space for fruit trees just yet? Don’t fret! If you are eager to taste your city’s home grown delicacies, try foraging! Here in Atlanta, Concrete Jungle has a wonderful map of where you can find fruit trees and berries across the city: https://www.concrete-jungle.org/food-map/
Once you’re on the map, you can open the food filter settings, and you can search for certain fruit trees or even select “in-season or upcoming foods” to prepare for your next foraging trip. Folks (like you!) can update the map to indicate whether a given tree has ripened fruit, underripe fruit, small fruit, medium size fruit, etc. It’s an incredible opportunity to try out some of these rare less retail-friendly fruits. Plus, I can’t think of a better way to get to know a city than going on a self-led foraging tour! Enjoy nature’s candy, and don’t forget to leave some for your neighbors too!
What’s next? Next month will bring more Muscadines, Asian Pears, and Apples! We can’t wait to tell you more about them. You may even be surprised and perhaps disappointed that we generally do not recommend growing Apples in Atlanta, but Asian Pears are a great substitute - tune in to find out why!
