Growing papayas

To grow good papayas you need a frost free climate, lots of sunlight, lots of water and very good soil. If you can supply all of the above you can pretty much stick some papaya seeds in the ground at any time of the year, and six to ten months later they will start fruiting.

Papayas are fast growing, single stem plants. The trunk is soft and does not have a bark, and papayas don't have branches. The leaves are huge and don't last long. Usually you have a tall trunk with a crown of leaves at the top of it. The overall appearance is a bit like a palm tree. If a papaya loses the growing tip or is cut back it can develop multiple trunks. The fruit grows on the trunk, and since papayas continue to grow up and up the fruit is harder and harder to get to as the papaya plant gets older...