Asimina spatulata (Kral) D.B.Ward — Spoonleaf pawpaw

Introduction

Spoonleaf pawpaw (Asimina spatulata) is a deciduous southeastern Coastal Plain shrub that Tree TSAR recognizes as distinct from the closely related A. angustifolia. The name was originally published at varietal rank as A. longifolia var. spatulata and was raised to species rank by Ward (2001). Current southeastern floras likewise recognize it as a species, whereas Plants of the World Online places it in synonymy under A. angustifolia. (Ward, 2001; Weakley, 2023; Franck, 2026; Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, 2026).

Tree TSAR places Spoonleaf pawpaw provisionally in the Pygmaea Clade because of its close relationship to A. angustifolia. The species-level split has not yet been tested with the kind of targeted population-level genomic sampling that would be most informative for resolving their boundary.

Diagnostic comparison used by current southeastern floras

Character	*A. angustifolia*	*A. spatulata*
Primary stems	Erect to ascending	Weakly to strongly arching
Leaf proportions	Usually narrower, mostly 8-15× as long as wide	Usually broader, mostly 6-10× as long as wide
Leaf widest point	At or shortly above the midpoint	Well beyond the midpoint, toward the tip
Young growth	Pubescent, becoming glabrous	Glabrous or very sparsely pubescent
Outer petals	Usually white	White or pink

Horticultural and Agricultural Uses

Published horticultural information specific to A. spatulata is sparse. Its value is primarily as a native shrub of open sandy southeastern habitats and as a conservation or botanical collection plant. Cultivation recommendations should be based on documented local habitat and provenance rather than borrowed wholesale from A. triloba.

Conservation Concerns

A separate modern global conservation assessment for the Tree TSAR species concept was not located. This is important because databases that synonymize A. spatulata with A. angustifolia necessarily merge occurrence and conservation data for the two. Recognition at species rank makes the western and Panhandle-centered lineage more visible, but its population trends should be evaluated independently before a global threat category is inferred.

Additional Information

Flora of the Southeastern United States: Flora of the Southeastern United States (opens in a new tab) - Regional flora recognizing A. spatulata.
Flora of Florida: Flora of Florida (opens in a new tab) - Current Florida treatment recognizing the species.
Plants of the World Online - Asimina angustifolia: Plants of the World Online - Asimina angustifolia (opens in a new tab) - Kew treats A. spatulata as a synonym of A. angustifolia.

References and Further Reading

Kral, R. 1960. A revision of Asimina and Deeringothamnus (Annonaceae). Brittonia 12: 233-278. DOI: 10.2307/2805119 (opens in a new tab).

Ward, D.B. 2001. New combinations in the Florida flora II. Novon 11: 360-365. DOI: 10.2307/3393047 (opens in a new tab).

Weakley, A.S. 2023. Flora of the Southeastern United States. University of North Carolina Herbarium, North Carolina Botanical Garden. Link (opens in a new tab)

Franck, A.R. 2026. Flora of Florida. University of Florida Herbarium, Florida Museum of Natural History. Link (opens in a new tab)

Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. 2026. Asimina angustifolia. Plants of the World Online. Link (opens in a new tab)