I have some young Papaya trees i grew from seeds, they currently are 6"tall witht their first 6 leaves showing. I plan on growing them in pots for now, they are in 1 gallon in a nutrient rich well drained soil. I would like to know if/when/how often i should be fertilizing. Possible fertilizer recommendations. Has anyone used "superthrive" before? I am in zone 10, i always read FULL sun, is it ok for young plants to go bone dry in the hot sun in between watering? I really appreciate all and any help.
I hope someone can help. I am also in zone 10 with about 100 papaya seedlings. The last batch only had two and they died. This time i had more luck and have 100. Do you keep them inside now? In a window? How many to a pot and when did you transplant them to bigger pots. Right now i have about 50 in one pot 50 in another and 6 in another. Not sure when to pot them individually. Last time they all died when i did.
I just transfered about 60 from a seedling tray to 1/2 gallon pots, i have them in full sun and they seem to be doing well. This is my first run at this so i don't really know what to expect, im just going with basic care. I have heard they can be very difficult to transplant, when i moved them from the seedling tray they had a nice tap root and have been in the new pots for over a week now. I am using Superthrive when i transplant, and fertilizing the small ones with a citrus 8-6-4
heres some pics, i am using 85% miracle grow potting soil and 15% sugar sand. seems to drain well over the course of 1 day in full sun. http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w224/DarkForestReptiles/IMG_0349.jpg http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w224/DarkForestReptiles/IMG_0407.jpg
Im in a similar climate in hawaii... i have had considerable success so far... you will find that, like bananas, papayas have considerable water content and root growth. As long as the soil you are using has a large amount of rock aggregate in it to keep drainage optimal, you should be fine. In hawaii, more commercial production is done with lots of lava as a base. If the soil has poor drainage, they suffer from root disease/rot. They thrive in full sun, just make sure they're getting enough water. a decent website with more info is: http://www.extento.hawaii.edu/kbase/Crop/crops/i_papa.htm
Amaneser, you need to be extremely gentle with them when you repot; the roots are fragile and you need to try and transfer as much dirt as possible with them. I'd start by splitting your pots of 50 in half, then wait a month and split it again into pots of 25, and so on until you're down to one or two in each pot. In Ecuador (zone 12), where papaya is native, they will grow in full sun but you can't let them go bone dry or they wilt and lose their leaves. Papaya plantations here are on the coast, which is extremely sunny but rains heavily (and I mean torrentially) at night; this is quite similar to the forests where they're found in the wild.
wow those photos look great. I read that you should wait until they have their first true leaves to move them. Right now they are starting to get the first true leaf. Since my last attempt failed i planted every seed out of a papaya. Not expecting all of them to germinate. I also read to brush your hand over them twice a day to simulate wind so they get a little stronger. I have been doing that. Today i will split the pots in half and hopefully that helps. Im sure they are getting crowded in there. Here is some pics
I think the bunching technique works fair to produce a few plants, but if you want all your germinated seeds to make it to potted babies, you will need better spacing. When thinning you will damage alot of roots when they are close together. when you get fresh seeds, soak them over night in a tall glass or jar of water. In the morning pour out the floating seeds and scraps on the surface and re-fill, then again in the afternoon pour out anything floating on top. Now all your bottome seeds should give you 90% germination!!!if handled correctly. Next, remove the arils surrounding the seeds, Arils are a specialized outgrowth from the funiculus (attachment point of the seed) (or hilum) that covers or is attached to the seed. It is sometimes applied to any appendage or thickening of the seed coat in flowering plants, such as the edible parts of the Pomegranate fruit, or the mace of the nutmeg seed. If left on the seed the aril will first need to break down before germination can begin, this can increase the duration over 1 week. This is a very tedious process best done while watching some TV or making conversation. Use your fingers to squeeze the arils off the seed. You can also use this method to shoot the seeds at your unsuspecting friends and family. Every so often you can refill and drain the container you are squeezing in, as the arils will mostly float and can be gradually discarded. Then begin to remove the Aril free seeds and place them in a shallow dish or bowl. They should feel like they have small bristles on them and appear a deep black color. Then spread the seeds over a tray of 3" thick soil and mist heavily. Sprinkle enough soil just to cover the seeds over the top(exposed seeds will still germinate if kept misted daily) Here are some step by step pics of the seeds. Using this technique as well as heat matts on my trays i am getting 90-95% germination on all seeds planted thus far. http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w224/DarkForestReptiles/IMG_0322.jpg http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w224/DarkForestReptiles/IMG_0325.jpg http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w224/DarkForestReptiles/IMG_0334.jpg http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w224/DarkForestReptiles/IMG_0336.jpg I hope this is helpful. I LOVE PAPAYA
I grow many Papayas in a large greenhouse in Colorado. All were started from seed in a 1-gallon container, then very carefully transplanted into a raised bed. Last week I had to cut one of my trees back because it had reached the top of the greenhouse (12-ft). After cutting the top off at about 3-1/2 feet, Papaya's frequently produce a double head (sort of like a "Y". I fertilize mine every two weeks with a 25-5-15 W/trace minerals. One must be extra careful when transplanting a papaya, as even a little disturbance of the root system can kill the tree. Without actually counting the number of fruit, each tree produced about 50-60 papayas, the size of an over grown zucchini, and I had 4 trees. After a while my family got tired of eating them. Papaya's are actually a very large herb. - Millet (1,358-)
wow you guys!!! Thanks so much for all that great info. I spend days and months on the net trying to find answers to certain things. But when i ask here i always get what im looking for without all the confusion of different sites and different opinions. Thanks again!
