animal manure must meet specific temperature standards during production (see the NOP standards). Use of legume cover crops in alleyways can help provide additional nitrogen to trees. Growers should conduct a foliar analysis in July to monitor your fertilization program. Irrigation during establishment improves tree survival rates and in mature trees it will improve fruit size. Irrigation requirements will vary by soil type and soil depth. A soil depth of at least 3 feet will help provide a water reservoir for the tree.
Pest and disease control. Pawpaw pest problems are limited and usually do not require control measures. Pawpaw leaves can exhibit leaf spot, principally a complex of Mycocentrospora asiminae, Rhopaloconidium asiminae, and Phyllosticta asiminae. Especially during wet years, fungal spot (Phyllosticta species) on leaves and the surface of fruit can lead to problems; infested fruit can to split during development. The pawpaw peduncle borer (Talponia plummeriana Busck) is a small moth larva, about 5 mm long, that burrows into the fleshy tissues of the flower causing the flower to wither and drop. Usually, the great abundance of unaffected flowers on trees does not require control of this insect. The zebra swallowtail butterfly (Eurytides marcellus), whose larvae feed exclusively on young pawpaw foliage, will damage leaves, but this damage has been negligible. The larvae of the leafroller (Choristoneura parallela Robinson) may damage flowers and leaves but
damage is negligible. Japanese beetles (Popillia japonica Newman) can damage young leaves on pawpaw trees, but once again, the damage is usually not severe. The Asian ambrosia beetle can attack pawpaw trees. The beetle bores into the tree trunk and limbs and carries with it a Fusarium fungus that clogs the vascular system of the tree. Large wood piles should not be stored near pawpaw orchards that can serve as a breeding ground for beetles.
For additional information check out these articles:
The Kentucky State University Pawpaw Information Website: (http://www.pawpaw.kysu.edu).
The University of Kentucky Extension Service: Organic Certification Process (http://www.uky.edu/Ag/NewCrops/introsh\_{eets}/organiccert.pdf).
ATTRA Tree Fruits: Organic Production Overview (http://attra.ncat.org/attrapub/fruitover.html).
Selecting the Right Cover Crop
(http://www.sarep.ucdavis.edu/ccrop/CCPubs/SelectingCoverCrop.html).
Washington State University Tree Fruit Research and Extension Center Organic & Integrated Fruit Production Home Page (http://organic.tfrec.wsu.edu/OrganicIFP/Home/Index.html).
Disease Management Guidelines for Organic Apple Production in Ohio (http://www.caf.wvu.edu/Kearneysville/organic-apple.html).
National Organic Program Standards
(http://www.ams.usda.gov/NOP/NOP/standards/FullRegTextOnly.html).
Organic Materials Review Institute or OMRI (http://www.omri.org).
Educational programs of the Cooperative Extension System serve all people regardless of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, marital or familial status. Issued in furtherance of the Cooperative Extension Work Act of September 29, 1977, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Article Revised July 12, 2010