Another pic

One more pic

They do not look like my paw paw plants. Compare the leaves to this picture of a paw paw.

Thanks Charlie,

I didn't want to bias anybody so I didn't mention it, but the plants seem to be in the same row which I recall planting the seeds. But I didn't flag the row, so I'm working from memory (which may or may not match reality).

I agree they do look different from the pawpaw plants in the pic you posted.

Thanks.

Congrats on being the proud parent of some new paw paws that you helped to enter the world. The leaf shape on juvenile plants like these will change as the plants get older. Next time, it would be advantageous to plant them a little farther from the others in this crowded neighborhood. More Sunlight and elbow room for growing up.

That really is a good place to start them,because they need a fair amount of shade when young. Brady

Brady: My paw paw seed planting and subsequent transplanting experience is limited to having planted several group-planted batches in several big pots over the last several years. Shading the emerging seedlings is easy to do when sliding big pots around to increased or decreased amounts of shade, and the soft/loose soil mix inside makes it easy to uproot the LONG tap root without ripping off the dinky side roots. Planting directly in the ground within 6" to 12" of this paw paw tree does surely help provide the much-appreciated shade for the emerging seedlings, but it's "the rest of the story" that is a concern with such sardine- packing type of crowding. If the seedlings stay right there forever, the very limited Sunlight and very limited room to grow will stunt the plants' future development so that they will not be able to "be all that they can be". Second, if the plan is to dig them up when small and transplant them to a roomier/sunnier place, digging away at the big tree's base down to a foot deep or deeper to remove the baby plants' LONG tap roots can tear up valuable lateral roots that are part of the big tree beside the seedlings. It is also likely the the ground is dense soil rather than lighjt/fluffy mix and thus the tap roots' dinky side roots will not be removed 100% still attached, undamaged, and ready to grow after being replanted.......But, if transplanting some of them is the plan, I would deep soak the seedling area until it got very soggy, get out a kitchen fork, and slowly dig out small amounts of soggy soil until each transplant candidate was free and clear and without damaging the big trees lateral roots. Using a shovel is very quick, but loss of roots that get chopped off is an issue on Paw paw babies. If these were jujubes, just dig away with a shovel.

I started several from seed and yours look like mine. One interesting thing about paw paws is when the new leaves begin by growing basically downward. Another interesting thing is when they are first coming up they look like a dead stick pocking out of the ground for up to an inch. Then life appears out of the center. If you accidentally dig one up before it has appeared above ground it may be a white tap root 4" long. Really fragile in regards to transplanting that tap root.

Thanks for the comments all. I will indeed be very careful in transplanting them.