Tulip Tree vs Pawpaw - TreeTime.ca

Tulip Tree vs Pawpaw

Liriodendron tulipifera

Asimina triloba

Tulip Tree
Pawpaw

Tulip Tree is the perfect shade tree for wide open spaces. It has a shallow and extensive root system, so ensure you give it space to grow. The attractive and showy, yellow-orange, tulip shaped flowers are where this tree gets its name.

Tulip Tree is somewhat rare in Canada but highly sought after as it is difficult to grow. Does best in a moist, well-drained soil.

The Pawpaw tree produces delicious, sweet fruit with a unique banana-mango flavor. These oblong fruits start yellowish-green and mature to a dark brown in the fall. It is best to leave them on the tree until ripe, as they do not ripen well once picked. Pawpaws can be enjoyed fresh, in baking, or in ice cream.

Pawpaws produce the largest native fruit in North America. They typically grow as a small understory tree or large shrub on wooded slopes, in ravines, and along stream banks. They often spread through root suckers, forming dense thickets over time.

For fruit production to occur more than one genetically different Pawpaw tree is required. Our Pawpaw seedlings are grown from seed so they are all genetically different.

Note: Avoid eating the seeds and skin of the Pawpaw fruit as they can cause stomach pain for some individuals. Contact with the skin of the fruit can also result in skin irritation, so it is recommended to wear gloves during harvest. Plant this tree once. Due to its large tap root transplanting is not recommended.

Tulip Tree Quick Facts

Pawpaw Quick Facts

Lowest Price: $7.49 - SAVE UP TO 25%
Lowest Price: $25.99 - SAVE UP TO 13%
Zone: 4a
Zone: 5a
Height: 24 m (80 ft)
Height: 6 m (20 ft)
Spread: 14 m (45 ft)
Spread: 6 m (20 ft)
Light: full sun
Light: any
Moisture: normal, wet
Moisture: normal, wet
Growth rate: fast
Growth rate: medium
Life span: long
Life span: medium
Growth form: upright, oval to pyramidal
Spreading: seeds - low
Suckering: none
Suckering: high


Foliage: 4-lobed somewhat spade-shaped
Fall colour: golden yellow
Flowers: greenish yellow, tulip-shaped
Flowers: red purple
Bloom time: spring to early summer
Fruit: large, yellow green to brown
Flavor: similar to mango or banana
Hybrid: no
Hybrid: no
Catkins: no
Catkins: no


Native to: ON
Native to: ON
Other Names: canoewood, tulip poplar, tulip-poplar, tuliptree, yellow poplar
Other Names: american pawpaw, custard apple, custard apple tree, indian banana, paw paw, paw-paw, wild banana