Carica Species, Mamao-Macho, Melon Tree, Papaya
Carica papaya
Family: | Caricaceae |
Genus: | Carica (KAIR-ih-kuh) (Info) |
Species: | papaya (puh-PIE-yuh) (Info) |

Category:
Edible Fruits and Nuts
Tropicals and Tender Perennials
Water Requirements:
Average Water Needs; Water regularly; do not overwater
Sun Exposure:
Full Sun
Foliage:
Grown for foliage
Shiny/Glossy
Foliage Color:
Height:
20-30 ft. (6-9 m)
Spacing:
8-10 ft. (2.4-3 m)
Hardiness:
USDA Zone 9a: to -6.6 °C (20 °F)
USDA Zone 9b: to -3.8 °C (25 °F)
USDA Zone 10a: to -1.1 °C (30 °F)
USDA Zone 10b: to 1.7 °C (35 °F)
USDA Zone 11: above 4.5 °C (40 °F)
Where to Grow:
Danger:
N/A
Bloom Color:
White/Near White
Bloom Characteristics:
This plant is attractive to bees, butterflies and/or birds
Flowers are fragrant
Bloom Size:
Bloom Time:
Blooms all year
Blooms repeatedly
Other details:
May be a noxious weed or invasive
Soil pH requirements:
7.9 to 8.5 (alkaline)
Patent Information:
Non-patented
Propagation Methods:
From seed; sow indoors before last frost
Seed Collecting:
Remove fleshy coating on seeds before storing
Allow unblemished fruit to ripen; clean and dry seeds
Properly cleaned, seed can be successfully stored
Regional
This plant is said to grow outdoors in the following regions:
Phoenix, Arizona
Tempe, Arizona
Tucson, Arizona
Davis, California
Hayward, California
Port Hueneme, California
Reseda, California
Sacramento, California
San Diego, California
Upland, California
Whittier, California
Bartow, Florida
Beverly Hills, Florida
Big Pine Key, Florida
Boca Raton, Florida
Bradenton, Florida
Bradley, Florida
Brooksville, Florida
Casselberry, Florida
Deland, Florida
Dunnellon, Florida
Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Gainesville, Florida
Holiday, Florida
Jacksonville, Florida
Keystone Heights, Florida
Kissimmee, Florida
Lake Worth, Florida
Largo, Florida
Lutz, Florida
Merritt Island, Florida
Miami, Florida
New Port Richey, Florida
Newberry, Florida
Orlando, Florida
Pompano Beach, Florida
Port Charlotte, Florida
Rockledge, Florida
Safety Harbor, Florida
Sarasota, Florida
Seffner, Florida
Venice, Florida
Winter Garden, Florida
Winter Haven, Florida
Winter Park, Florida
Winter Springs, Florida
Brunswick, Georgia
Hilo, Hawaii
Honomu, Hawaii
Kapaa, Hawaii
Wailua Homesteads, Hawaii
Kenner, Louisiana
Marrero, Louisiana
Bethesda, Maryland
Pass Christian, Mississippi
Bayamon, Puerto Rico
Vieques, Puerto Rico
Aransas Pass, Texas
Austin, Texas(3 reports)
Bellaire, Texas
Edinburg, Texas
Galveston, Texas
Harlingen, Texas
Houston, Texas(3 reports)
Mission, Texas(2 reports)
San Antonio, Texas(3 reports)
show allGardeners' Notes:
Rating | Content |
---|---|
Positive | On Feb 9, 2017, RidhaDZ from Knäred, Hey from Sweden ! |
Positive | On Feb 15, 2016, markdeutsch from Pass Christian, MS wrote: I posted my zone 8B-9A boarder location for this plant, not because they can grow outside here year-round, but because I've grown them from seed to fruit as quickly as 4 months !!!! This was a Giant Mexican Papaya in full sun in a 5 gallon container of palm/cactus pre-fertilized mix. I have tried dwarf Hawaiian types with no fruiting success. I grew the Mex to see how big I could get it in one season. Did not expect to have well formed fruit after 4 months, which I ate after the fifth month. Had success later with the T.R. Hovey cultivar. It had fruit at 5 months. |
Positive | On Dec 13, 2014, greenman62 from Kenner, LA (Zone 9a) wrote: this is absolutely my favorite fruit. |
Positive | On Nov 24, 2008, graciemae from Sealy, TX (Zone 9a) wrote: Just tonight I had someone identify that the plants growing in my yard are papaya trees. I had probably 30 or more come up in a flower bed after I emptied my compost bin. I don't know where the seed came from I had never bought a papaya. I pulled most of them up left a couple and one is about 10 feet tall and just blooming. One fell over with Ike this Aug. - it's lying on the ground with large fruit on it. Falling didn't seem to hurt it at all as it's still growing like crazy. I'm just glad to know what it is and will update when I actually get fruit from it |
Positive | On May 1, 2008, basilio from Athens, Papayas are great, but I don't think that they can tolerate 9a winter temperatures, as it is claimed here. I had about 10 papayas grown from seed and just one freezing night (lowest temp. around 26F) was more than enough to kill every one of them...Not as hardy as listed! |
Positive | On Nov 24, 2007, tmccullo from Houston, TX (Zone 9a) wrote: We bought some of the Red Lady papaya's to try the taste. The are absolutly much better than the Mexican papayas we get here at the grocery store. It is a much sweeter fruit. We planted the seeds and have about 20 or so papayas growing together. The flowers are very sweet smelling and attract bees and huming bird moths. The trees are about 8 foot tall and have fruit on them. One last year died back when we had a rough winter with several days in the high 20's but has come back with several branches. |
Positive | On May 5, 2007, FloridaGrower from Winter Springs, FL (Zone 9b) wrote: The above comment is not entirely true. Papaya is good for a few years and several crops before the fruit starts to decline. You should get at least 3 to 4 good crops out of it. |
Neutral | On Dec 20, 2006, Tetrazygia from Miami, FL (Zone 10b) wrote: Papayas have long been naturalized where I live, and there seems to be a good amount of genetic diversity because in our yard we get all kinds of variety in the plants and fruit. New plants are always sprouting up, and we usually let them grow until they flower and then keep only the females. Some end up having small fruits, some are very large. So far, though, they all have white or beige flowers--unlike the yellow flowers I see on plants in parks and whatnot. |
Positive | On Apr 29, 2005, armentarius wrote: I concur with Harrison's experience. Last year, I bought a papaya (aka "lechosa", in Venezuela) from the Farmers' Market in Houston. It was an unusually delicious, red one. I saved the seeds, and threw them in my flower bed where I also grow Tabasco Pepper plants. They grew rapidly, flowered and put on fruit, lots of fruit. They survived the Christmas Eve "snow storm" and continue to have lots of delicious fruit. Definitely positive experience in the Houston area, when no hard freezes occur. |
Positive | On Apr 13, 2005, rjuddharrison from Houston, TX (Zone 9a) wrote: I have similar results as JaxFlaGardener. I bought a Papaya at the store, saved the seeds. I wasn't prepared for the sucess of the seedlings as I planted extra for casualties. I put 2 into pots, wintered them in the green house then planted them in the ground the following spring (last year 2004). I planted them in 2's and 3's after reading about the male and female. They must be a Hermaphrodite species as every tree produced fruit that was nice and sweet. The trees all survived the winter, even snow on Christmas eve, keeping the fruit which are becoming ripe now. I'm harvesting the fruit for the seeds as the over winter ones don't seem as nice for texture and taste. I was giving the surplus away left and right last year because I had so many. They were a novelty to people here be... read more |
Positive | On Apr 13, 2005, JaxFlaGardener from Jacksonville, FL (Zone 8b) wrote: I bought a small papaya plant last year. It grew to about 6 ft in a 30 gallon pot, flowered, and produced good sized fruit. I am fairly certain it is the only papaya for miles around, so I apparently have the self-pollinating variety. I overwintered it in my greenhouse. Most of the leaves fell off as well as some of the fruit, none of which had time to ripen in one season. I've now moved the potted plant back to its location in full sun in my garden and will probably have ripe fruit before the Fall. The tree is somewhat of a novelty in NE Florida since we do typically have a few nights of below freezing temperatures in the Winter. I find the elongated trunk shape, waxy flowers, and mammarian fruit attractive enough to be worth the effort of hauling the plant in and out of the green... read more |
Positive | On Apr 12, 2005, DawnRain from Bartow, FL wrote: As a child, papaya was a fruit I avoided. I liked its look, but I did not like the smell or the musky taste. There are fruits now with wonderful taste and if you didn't like papaya before, try one of the new ones. Marado is often sold in grocery stores. It is large and melon like and very delicious. So is Sunset, a small type. And Red Lady is super too. There are others, but those come to mind at the moment. These are all red fruited. I don't know if that makes a difference in the taste, but I have seen other papaya haters change their mind. |
Positive | On Apr 11, 2005, Kameha from Kissimmee, FL (Zone 9b) wrote: Such a wonderful versatile plant. Not only does it give you delicious fruit but it provides fragrant flowers and attractive foliage. Very common dooryard plant in much of the Florida peninsula...it surprised me how many old specimens there are even in Orlando. Provides fruit year round. It will be killed by frosts and freezes but mine has been growing for 4 years now. If you want more of a chance of it making it through the winter than plant it close to a southern wall of your house. It will also benefit from absorbing some calcium from the foundation concrete. North Floridians grow papayas as an annual and it will bear fruit in only 9 months. You need both male and female plants for pollination but there are bisexual plants as well. Male flowers hang further out from the trunk an... read more |
Positive | On Aug 11, 2004, sonotaps from Phoenix, AZ wrote: I live in Phoenix and have my solo variety (3) planted together in a raised bed with cactus mix. If you grow Mexican Papaya (not as good in my opinion but a little easier), make sure you have three in order to get fruit. With Hawaiian, you have a 66% chance of fruit with just one plant, but why risk it? |
Positive | On Sep 29, 2003, anomina from Bradenton, FL (Zone 9b) wrote: Papaya is an enthusiastic grower in Bradenton, Florida (U.S.) where we have sandy soil, so a bit of fertilizer is a help. |
Positive | On Sep 24, 2003, Thaumaturgist from Rockledge, FL (Zone 10a) wrote: Papaya (Carica papaya) trees are one of the most common sights in Florida and elsewhere in the tropical and subtropical regions of the world. |
Positive | On Sep 24, 2003, suncatcheracres from Old Town, FL wrote: I grew a very large and sweet red fruit variety from Hawaii in my yard in St. Petersburg, Florida, zone 9b, for many years. They were in a bed with Dwarf Brazilian Bananas, cannas, datura, zebra plant, copper leaf and other tropical looking plants, and we really enjoyed the fruit year after year. After winters with no frost, the plants would get really tall, but we never went more than two years without frost, and then they would die down, and I would start over from seed the next spring. |
Positive | On Sep 22, 2003, seanpmi from Hollywood, FL wrote: Plants in South Florida can be male (non-fruit producing), female or both. Mine grows in sandy soil and is about 6 months old and is already 7 feet tall with over 21 fruits growing. Some are large and are taking their time in ripening. |
Neutral | On Jul 1, 2003, skrsmsb from New Orleans, LA wrote: I have grown this plant off and on for years in my 9A garden zone. It grows like topsy here in New Orleans, Louisiana (U.S.), with a watery trunk and little density. It flowers and fruits easily, and although it needs a mate, it seems to find one in the neighborhood to send the bees and moths to. |
Neutral | On Jun 29, 2003, Monocromatico from Rio de Janeiro, This is a dioecious small tree, so you must have both male and female individuals to produce fruits. We have those growing spontaneously in poor, acidic soils. So besides the soil, you must provide it full sun and heat. It would be good if you could keep it away from the frost and snow. |