Fruit trees provide shade, food and aesthetic beauty when they are in blossom or ripe with fruit. America is home to a number of fruit trees that supply such benefits. Most of these fruits are sweet and can be enjoyed raw or used in simple desserts.
The pawpaw tree is native to the United States and can grow to the size of a small tree, or about 30 feet. Pawpaw trees bear the largest of the native fruit grown in America, with fruit as large as 1 foot in length. The pawpaw fruit can smell similar to bananas and also have a yellow green exterior like that of a banana. Pawpaws are commonly used for desserts such as custards and cakes. The oil from the pawpaw tree's leaves can be used to make an organic insect repellent. The pawpaw tree can survive in cold environments and thrives in forests from north Florida to the Midwest and also lives in most eastern states all the way north to Nebraska. Pawpaw fruit is a good source of vitamin C, manganese, magnesium, zinc, calcium, potassium, copper and iron.
The mamey sapote fruit tree is a tropical American tree that contains a large, glassy brown seed in the center. Fruit can be about 8 inches in length. The interior of the fruit is a red, orange color and can be made into jam, ice creams, drinks or sherbet mixes. The tree is quite large, and ranges from 60 to 140 feet high. It thrives in full sun environments. Native people of Ecuador also eat the fruit and use the shiny, dark brown seeds for decorative necklaces.
The American persimmon comes from the eastern side of the United States. These fruit can be very sweet when ripe and early Native Americans, wild turkeys, mockingbirds, deer, raccoons, foxes and squirrels enjoyed eating them. The fruit can also be turned into pudding, brandy, preserves and beer, while also being dried to make a sweet fruit candy. A ripe fruit is easy to tell because it will become soft and wrinkly. The fruit is a dark orange color. The tree's flowers are extremely fragrant and can attract honeybees to this nectar source.
The star apple is native to tropical America and is a good shade tree. When a fruit is ripe, it will be dark with purplish skin. The inside of the star apple is a pink color and when cut cross-wise, the seeds look like a star. They can be eaten raw because of their very sweet nature or preserved, and they also go well in desserts and fruit or veggie salads. A tree can be from 25 to 80 feet tall, with long, glossy leaves.
