🥭 Wells - A Time-Tested Selection with Massive Fruits and Pure Tropical Sweetness

Variety Description

Summary

Wells (often marketed as Wells Delight) is a cornerstone variety in the history of pawpaw domestication. Discovered in the wild near Salem, Indiana, by David Wells, it stunned the horticultural community when it outperformed over 400 other selections in the early 1990s variety trials. It is defined by its remarkable consistency—producing heavy crops of large, uniform fruits that possess a flavor profile many considered the gold standard before the advent of modern hybrids. The pulp is a vibrant, deep orange-yellow with a luxurious "custard-like" consistency and a complex sweetness that measures approximately 20° Brix. Its combination of historic competition-winning flavor, robust disease resistance, and high annual yields makes it a mandatory inclusion for any serious pawpaw orchard.

Foundations and Pedigree

As a wild selection (wild germplasm), Wells remains one of the purest expressions of the Indiana pawpaw. Its natural vigor and fruit quality provided the baseline for much of the breeding work that followed in the late 20th century.

Fruit Specifications: The Historic Benchmark

Physical Attributes: Medium to large, oval fruits. While university trials (KSU) recorded averages around 105g under high-density stress, home growers and commercial catalogs frequently document specimens in the 200–400g range. Palette: A balanced, resonant sweetness that captures the pure tropical essence of the species. Texture: consistently smooth and fine-grained.

Orchard Integrity

Efficiency: Wells is a "workhorse" variety. It is one of the most reliable and heavy-bearing selections available, with a proven track record of maintaining its 65-fruit-per-tree average in diverse soil conditions. Growth Habit: Reaches a manageable height of 3 to 5.5 meters, making it ideal for standard orchard spacing.

Management and Logistics

Maturity Timing: Perfectly timed for the peak of the September harvest. Pollination strategy: Thrives when paired with other Indiana selections or modern Peterson/Lehman hybrids. Reliability: Its high scores for disease resistance (9/10) mean it requires less intervention than many modern cultivars.

Environmental Adaptation

Fully resilient in USDA Zones 5–8. Its origins in the American Midwest guarantee its ability to handle both continental winter freezes and high-humidity summer surges.

Conclusion

Wells is the "proven classic" of the pawpaw world. It offers a rare connection to the elite wild germplasm of Indiana, delivering fruit quality that stood the test of competition against hundreds of challengers. For the grower who values reliability, massive yields, and a rich historical pedigree, Wells is an indispensable cultivar. It remains as relevant today as it was when first discovered, proving that nature's best selections can still rival the most sophisticated human-led breeding programs.