FREMONT, Mich. -- Michigan is no stranger to crops with things like corn, apples and cherries taking over most fields. But it's also home to a tropical fruit, the Paw Paw.
Bananas cannot grow in Michigan's rough climate, but Paw Paws do and they taste a lot like them. Magicland Farms in Fremont has a grove and their Bernadette Fox told us all about the tropical fruit.
"It's banana-like, but it also has hints of pineapple. To me it tastes a little more like pineapple than banana, but sometimes has a little mango as well. And then some vanilla in it, when you get it just right."
Paw Paws grow as far south as Florida and far north as Ontario, but Fox says each variety tastes a little different. Perhaps it's the tastiness of the Michigan Paw Paw, that's why entire towns are named after it.
"All the different areas in and around Michigan, like Paw Paw, Michigan, the city, and the Paw Paw River are named after the fruit," Fox explains.
So if the pineapple/banana-like fruit is actually a Paw Paw, why call it a Michigan banana?
"Paw Paw is a play on word for Papaya, because it kind of looks like that fruit, but it has nothing to do with it. So I'd rather call it a Michigan banana," Fox says.
If you want to get your hands on a Paw Paw, better do so quickly, the season is only two weeks long and they aren't in grocery stores.
