In other words you want to know of any success stories buying chance seedlings. I bought 2 healthy paw paw seedlings from a nursery at a farmers market. It was a decision I would never regret. It was said that they were selected from commercial parents and would probably be okay. When they grew and fruited I became impressed with the one that didn't have so many seeds and ripened so early. So in Sept last year I lined some up and took pictures and e-mailed them back to the nursery.
Early Okay Paw Paw

I know you can't see the seeds. At the time I never thought to open one because I never knew until October the other one had so many. It was when I was home (SW Washington state) from Alaska.

I would try Neal Peterson first at Peterson's Pawpaws (google him). The mail order tree I received from him was outstanding. Also try www.tollgategardens.com Larry sibley sends quality,proven, named varieties. You can't go wrong with either guy.

I've heard many recommendations for Neal Peterson, but I admit to be a bit reluctant to purchase a cultivar which are adapted to a significantly different climate. Perhaps I'll send him and email and ask if he knows how his seedlings have been doing in the hotter states.

There are many great mail order nurseries. A good rule of thumb is that if you receive a catalog from a nursery without requesting it, don't order from there. And don't order from a southern nursery if it has weird photoshopped pictures on its website. Consider the possibility of grafting named varieties onto an unnamed tree. Pawpaws tend to grow root sprouts and you can graft different varieties on them.

Pawpaws have the reputation (which I cannot attest to yet personally) of typically not wandering too far from the seed parent's characteristics in a seedling. Certainly the chances of a good pawpaw from a good parent are far better than in an apple, if perhaps not as good as in citrus or even peach. Even the most select pawpaws are only a generation or two from the wild so they are not highly selected genetically. If the seed came from a selected parent tree you probably have a good item. Maybe use it (them) as the pollinator for a grafted one. Peterson's pawpaws grow well here in Z8 (new map) or at the boundary of 7/8 (old map).

"And don't order from a southern nursery if it has weird photoshopped pictures on its website. "

:D

Been surfing for info and found a guy who grows and sells paw paws just a few miles from here. So there are varieties available that will definitely grow well here. I would not be surprised if he is the source of those trees at the nursery.

"Peterson's pawpaws grow well here in Z8 (new map) or at the boundary of 7/8 (old map)."

Good to know, thanks!